Counting Stars
by Insanity Allegra
Summary: BabyblasterAU, Winged!Magic!Frisk. Three experiments created and held captive by Dr. Gaster have escaped his clutches. Now, on the run, can they find a safe home and gain Justice for the wrongs brought upon them? Or will Sans, Papyrus, and Frisk succumb to the purpose they were created for? Is the world really kill or be killed, or can they win their freedom with Mercy?
1. You Found Me

Journal Entry 42; 01/5/XX

 _My assistant fell down today. Roslyn took her own life right in front of me._

 _It was disheartening. She couldn't handle our experiments. What we do, we do for the good of all monster kind. I suppose, in the end, her Kindness soul overwhelmed her, and she desired nothing more than to absolve herself of the sins crawling down her back._

 _In the positives, Roslyn ending her own life in front of me gave me a chance to save her soul. Being one of the few Boss monsters outside the royal family, Roslyn's soul lingered for a precious few seconds after her body turned to dust. I managed to grab one of the syringes of Determination I had ready for S-1's injection today and stick it before it could disappear._

 _That was three hours ago. It remains intact. I have decided to monitor it closely and continue to administer injections as needed. I do not know what to do with a monster soul, but it's an opportunity I will likely not get again._

 _I returned Roslyn's dust to her younger sister, Nikita, with my sincere condolences. I told her I didn't know why she'd done it._

 _Journal Entry 67; 05/7/XX_

 _I found a human in my lab today! They were unconscious, and heavily injured. I honestly have no clue how they got here. I checked the cameras, but they only show an empty room, then static, then the human lying where I found them._

 _I treated their injuries. It turns out that they were an extremely small female. She could be anywhere between three and five years of age._

 _When I pulled out her soul, I was shocked. It was mangled, practically falling apart at the seams. A quick test made me realize that the only reason she was even still alive was because her soul type is red- Determination._

 _I would turn her over to the king, but her soul will be useless to him. If it even survives the journey._

 _I will take this opportunity to test out a theory..._

 _Journal Entry 68; 05/10/XX_

 _Success! I managed to graft the remains of Roslyn's soul to the human's. She has not woken up yet, as I have been keeping her sedated._

 _I made a plate for her. When I inspected her wrist, I discovered she was wearing a bracelet with what was presumably her name and address engraved into it. The name was 'Frisk Seraphee'. An odd name by human standards, but that no longer matters. She will be WDG-3 F from now on. I installed the plate onto the back of her hand. There was quite a bit of blood and mess, and there's no doubt in my mind that she will be in a lot of pain if she wakes up before it heals fully._

 _I am glad I kept her under, as after the first few hours with her new hybrid soul passed uneventfully, 3-F began to spasm and yell out in pain. She did not awaken, not even when the skin on her back burst open to allow her new appendages to spread and her very bones began to reshape to accommodate them._

 _She grew wings before my eyes, and it was fascinating. They are red and gold, much like Roslyn's, however the red is a much brighter shade, almost the precise shade of the colored portions of her soul._

 _The wings were not large enough to carry her weight, and the feathers, once cleaned of blood, were revealed to be small and downy. Over the next three days her body continued to shift and change, often accompanied by her spasming against the straps I secured her to the medical table with and screaming despite her unconscious state. I can only imagine the noise she'd be making if she weren't sedated and on painkillers._

 _Today, three days after it began, the growth seems to have stopped. Her new wings are now a bit larger than when they first grew out of her back, and they appear to be fledging properly, with most of the primary feathers fully grown. I have little doubt that the wings will grow larger as she ages, but for now they could probably take her slight weight._

 _Other notable changes are patches of feathers growing on parts of her skin, particularly her wrists, ankles, and among her hair. These are still fluffy and downy, however I have noticed the ones in her hair seem to glow in the darkness of the lab. In addition, her weight has changed. Despite the addition of her new appendages, she weighs almost forty pounds less than when I measured her upon her arrival. I believe that, somehow, the composition of her bones and potentially her organs may have changed. It's a test for another day. Her back has the most interesting changes, however. Upon cleaning the blood off of her, I discovered that her ribs have literally changed shape, leaving large indents, for lack of a better word, in her back. Her wings are joined to her body at her spine, and I hypothesize that Subject F-3 will be able to fold them to fit into those depressed areas on either side of it._

 _It's quite fascinating._

 _I will wait a day or so to be certain the changes have stopped before bringing Subject S-1 in to help heal her hand and the wounds on her back. I have a plan to both keep him from becoming hostile and to potentially begin to create the same emotional bonds between S-1 and F-3 (and P-2 and F-3) that serve me so well with S-1 and P-2._

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S-1 followed the Doctor down the hall to the operation room with a heavy soul. He really didn't want to deal with this today, not when his brother was still recovering from the last time he was in here. It would be a lot harder to calm P down if S was recovering from something.

When they entered the room, S was shocked to see something already lying on the table.

It was... Um. It kind of was shaped like he and P, except it was a different color, and it was like it had... Stuff... Around its bones. And it had a pair of big red and yellow things lying on its back. They looked similar to the things on Miss Roslyn's back. It was strapped to the table, lying on its front. There was a shock of brown stuff on its head for some reason.

"w-what's that?" He asked the Doctor quietly. He didn't want to upset the man and earn a punishment, but the Thing was so strange, and there had to be a reason for the Doctor showing it to him, right?

"She used to be a human, but now she is something entirely new." The Doctor answered simply. "I had to take Miss Roslyn's soul and mix it with hers to keep her alive. She is Subject F-3, and, so long as things go to plan, she will be your new sister."

Sister? What was that? His confusion must have shown on his face, because the Doctor continued, "A sister is a brother, but female. She would be your sister, while you and 2-P would be her brothers."

S absorbed that, looking at the not-human.

"Your task is to heal her back and the area where I've installed her plate."

"yes, sir." Sans mumbled, walking over and lying a skeletal hand on her back. She was very warm. It was nice... Green magic surrounded his hand and he pumped it into the big sores at the base of the red and yellow things. He'd never seen anything like the open wounds, and he watched with interest as more of the pale-colored warm stuff replaced the dark red clotting.

He then walked to her right hand and took a look at her plate. It was just like his and P's, except that it had her designation instead of his own or P's. There was more clotted red peeking out from under it, and he found it made him feel unsettled to look at it. Quickly, he pumped more healing magic into it, and she seemed to untense a bit, despite being lucky enough to be under.

Once he was finished, the Doctor escorted him back to his and P's cell, locking him inside.

Immediately he headed over to the small body, pulling his brother into his lap and cooing to him. It hurt S to have to see his brother so afraid, with thick bandaging over both eyes. P was currently in his blaster form, as he'd been instructed not to shift until the Doctor removed the bandages.

"hey, p. i've got some news for you, bud." S cooed, stroking his brother's head. P made a noise to show he was listening.

"we're getting a sister. and a sister is like a brother but a female, like miss roslyn. she looked really weird, but she was warm when i touched her. i hope she likes us. the doctor said she used to be a human..." S spent most of the night speculating on what their new sister would be like, until P fell asleep and then he did, as well.

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 _Journal Entry 70; 05/12/XX_

 _I woke F-3 up. The first thing I did was interrogate her, to see what she remembers of how she got into my lab._

Apparently

 _whatever happened to her before she fell unconscious was enough to scramble her memory pretty badly, or perhaps it was the stress of having half her soul replaced. Either way, she consistently responded that she couldn't remember anything when questioned._

 _When she first spoke, she'd seemed confused, and then quickly became horrified. When I questioned her, she responded that it wasn't 'right' then elaborated that 'it' was her voice. I do not understand her panic. I had to threaten her with punishment before she would speak again, however._

 _I noted upon her arrival that her eyes were blue, however they seem to have become the same shade of red as her feathers. It makes me wonder what other small things have changed._

 _She is rather cooperative, aside from the speaking issue, possibly because of her apparent memory loss, and accepted my brief explanation that she belonged to me, that I created her, and that I would be taking her to meet her brothers without so much as a blink._

 _Time will tell if her behavior will change._

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" _Twinkle, twinkle, little star... How I wonder what you are. Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky. Twinkle twinkle little star, how I wonder what you are._ "

P giggled and clapped his little hands together, and S smiled widely in F's direction. F blushed slightly, going quiet again, but she leaned against him and shut her eyes.

"f."

"Hmm?"

"what's a star?"

Her face scrunched up, and he wondered if he'd upset her.

"Stars are... Lights. In the sky, on the surface. Only when it's dark. They are very pretty. I don't remember a lot more than that, I'm sorry."

S nodded, snuggling into her side. One of her soft, warm wings came to wrap around him, while she brought P to lay on her chest. "good night, sister. i'll see you when the lights come on."

 _Journal Entry 104; 09/18/XX_

 _Today was the first time I set F-3 and S-1 into the combat simulator together. I am pleased with the results. They did a passable job fighting off the simulated foes, though I must note that F-3 still can not achieve liftoff without a sizable ledge to leap from. We will need to work on that. Her wings are her biggest advantage in a battle._ _  
_  
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 _Frisk._

 _Her name is Frisk._

She'd lived elsewhere, once upon a time. A place where there were lovely lights in the dark sky and soft voices to sing her to sleep. Her memory was damaged, fragmented, but she still remembered.

 _Her name is Frisk. She is five, going on six. The stars are lovely._

The faces and images are blurred and indistinct. They tumble over one another and give her a headache. So she keeps only the ones she needs. The stars. The name. The songs. They will stay with her. They have to.

"Someday, S," She cooed at her older brother. She still didn't like her voice. It doesn't fit, it was wrong. But S and P like it, and at the moment she was trying to soothe S. "I'll show you the stars. I promise."

P snuggled up to her side in blaster form. He was asleep and clinging to her gown in moments.

"we'd have to get out of here for that, f." S said dejectedly. There were bandages over one eye, and he had sizable cracks peeking out from under them. They will heal, hopefully, but she knew they hurt.

"I swear." She said with a little more force, pulling the skeleton closer. "There's got to be a way. There has to be." Her red eyes shone with Determination in the dark of their cell.

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 _Journal Entry 109; 09/11/XX_

 _F-3 has figured out a rather... Unorthodox method of taking flight from a standstill. I set her practicing in the room I have set up for her flight training while I took S-1 to the operation room for yet another attempt to fix his eye. When I returned, she was using Integrity magic to lift her own soul into the air and then drop, thus giving herself enough time to take off._

 _She has never shown any sign of being capable of magic, let alone blue magic. Perhaps S-1 has been attempting to teach her?_

 _As fortunate as her new abilities are, she will still have to figure out how to take off with a running start. Relying on steep drops is a bad habit to get into._

 _Notably, both of her eyes and the increasingly large feathers in her hair turned dark blue when she was using dark blue magic._ _  
_  
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"I just got so frustrated!" F tugged at one of the small, nearly invisible feathers on her wrist. "I can't take off from a running start! I don't know what it is!" Behind her, her wings twitched, prompting P to bat at them with one paw.

"so you just wanted to get into the air, then?"

"Yes. And the next thing I know, I'm just rising straight up!"

"can you do it again?"

She nodded, but then froze.

There was a thump out in the hall. Three heads whipped in that direction. P shifted back to his bipedal form and clung to S's side.

Out of the darkness of the lab, a small yellow dinosaur monster in a bright pink dress entered the room with a little device in her hand.

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 _Journal Entry 114; 10/17/XX_

 _My camera systems are acting up again. It's only happening at night so far, but I need to take a look. I wish I could just call a professional in, but that's the price of doing illegal things in your proverbial basement._

 _In other news, I decided on a course of action for the communication issues I posed in Entry 113. If I force a soul bond between them, they'll be capable of non-verbal communication between the three of them without having to worry about what form the Blasters are in, or if F-3 is in one of her snits regarding her voice, or what the distance between them is._

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"H-Hi..."

Frisk gave a little wave, smiling wanly at Alphys. Papyrus was currently huddled into the corner of their cell, and Sans was drinking from their water bottle.

None of them were sure if they were happy or unhappy about the new intruders in their minds.

"D-did the Doctor do something new to you guys?"

Frisk frowned. "He kind of forced our souls to touch?"

Alphys gasped. "H-He made you B-bond?"

"i guess? we can hear each other in our heads."

"HEAR BROTHER N' SISTER, ALLIE!" Papyrus agreed.

"That... That's not okay! That's a violation of the very culmination of your being!"

"i'm going to pretend that i understood that."

Alphys sighed and dug a few sandwiches out of her bag.

"You are the _best_ , Alphys." F said quietly as she took them from their friend.

"I'm working on a plan to get you out of here. I swear."

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 _Journal Entry 137; 12/04/XX_

 _F-3 used purple magic today. She was as shocked as I was._

 _I had set her doing dark blue magic drills with S-1, and the pair of them had spent most of the day using Integrity magic to lift each other and the various objects in the room. I left the room for just a moment to take a call, and returned to find S-1 chasing F-3 around the testing chamber with one of the cushions they had been given to practice with. I was about to catch them with my own magic and punish them accordingly when Subject F-3 stopped short, her eyes beginning to glow with a violet light. Threads of purple magic crisscrossed through the room and S-1's soul turned purple and caught on one, leaving him incapable of chasing her further. She then spent the next five minutes in a state of panic, trying to figure out how to get him down safely._

 _It originally shocked me when F-3 first used both Patience and Integrity magic a few months ago. As noted in the relevant Journal Entries (109, 111), I chalked it up at the time to her mimicking S-1 and P-2 and learning how to channel it from them._

 _Now I am not so sure. Her soul type still reads as Determination subtype Kindness when scanned, and so I am mostly going off of speculation. Determination has never been recorded as a primary soul type in monsters, and it is an extremely rare subtype. Recent research from other scientists who have been studying soul magic indicate that a monster with a Determination subtype can occasionally manifest other traits, for example: a monster with one percent Bravery may still throw themselves in front of a stranger if they're determined enough, or a monster with minimal Perseverance may actually push through to the end of an arduous task despite their lack of steadfastness. I hypothesize that, under the right circumstances, and assuming the research is correct, F-3 may be capable of channeling every color of magic._

 _For now, I will have her run drills with her newfound purple magic on P-2. S-1 is far to fragile for her to practice damaging attacks on._

 _Side note: I broke all of the cameras trying to fix them. I'll have to purchase an entire new system. Joy._

 _Journal Entry 138; 12/05/XX_

 _I cannot believe this!_

 _Somehow, they have escaped. All of my equipment is internally fried. There is no record of how they managed it, thanks to the downed cameras._

 _I will have to locate them before they destroy everything I have worked for!_


	2. Set Fire To The Rain

Disclaimer: I don't own Undertale, Babyblasters was created by Spacegate, Handplates by Zarla, etc, etc...

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Three small figures trudged through the underground rain in the winding, sodden caverns of Waterfall.

They were children, all clearly under the age of ten, two boys and a girl. All three wore paper-thin hospital-style gowns in light green.

The eldest of the trio was a little skeleton, eight years of age, small and stout. He had large eye sockets and small white pupils that darted about in them warily. On his back, a small pink backpack stood out starkly in the gloom. He led the way through the caves with all the confidence of a tiny, fluffy kitten faced with a Rottweiler. In other words, he was absolutely terrified.

The middle child was a young girl, human at first glance. Clearly visible in the low-cut back of her gown, though, was a mass of red and gold feathers, matching the ones in her long, tangled hair and barely visible on her wrists and ankles. She was almost six now, but looked about four, small and slight as she was. She stumbled along through the knee-deep water after her companion, clutching the precious bundle in her arms to her chest.

That bundle was the third child, another skeleton and the youngest of the group. Though it was difficult to tell due to his age (around three), he was a bit lankier than his elder companion. He was clinging to the girl's wrist and the shoulder strap of her gown.

These three children were siblings in all the ways that mattered to them. And their journey had just begun.

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Frisk brushed some of her sodden hair out of her eyes, making an inarticulate noise of frustration. It was so _wet_ here!

Sans glanced back at her before speaking over their mental link. 'you okay?'

'My feathers are wet and they itch like _crazy_ , I'm freezing my bum off while you two are perfectly fine, we're all hungry and dirty and tired... No, I'm not alright, but complaining won't help.' She responded irritably in the same manner.

Sans picked at the underside of his handplate with one boney finger. 'we'll find a place to stop soon. I was just hoping we could find some food, first, but it's not looking like that's gonna happen.'

'Tomorrow.' Frisk agreed with a sigh. 'We can give Paps something small from what Alphys gave us to keep him quiet, but we really should save that. There's not bound to be a lot.'

Sans nodded, pupils flicking back and forth as he searched for a safe, dry place for them to sleep.

Frisk, meanwhile, had a different issue. "Ah... Ah... _ACHOO_!" Her sneeze echoed through the caverns and was bounced back at them by the nearby blue flowers. Sans turned to look at her, concerned.

'Sorry. I seem to have the sneezles.' She rubbed her nose thoughtfully.

"there's a place." Sans gasped quietly, pointing over her shoulder. Frisk turned to see him looking at a hidden indent in the wall barely visible from this direction and not at all visible from where they had come. It was big enough for the three of them so long as the boys stayed in blaster form, and best of all it was at least a foot above the standing water and mostly protected from the seemingly-endless rain.

Frisk tapped Papyrus on the shoulder and he obediently shifted in her arms. She was always amazed at how much they shrank in this form. Where did all their bones even go? She patted him on the skull and he made a distinctly purr-like noise, making her giggle softly.

Frisk climbed into the indent in the wall first, setting Papyrus beside her head. Sans then shifted and jumped in, scrambling up the little edge to avoid falling back into the water, which was literally deeper than he was tall in this form. Sans cuddled up beside Frisk, both attempting to ignore how wet they were.

Frisk took the chance to tear a section off one of the sandwiches from Alphys's bag and give it to Papyrus. 'Here you go, baby bro.'

Pap made a noise of delight, happily shoving the whole chunk in his mouth.

Sans watched him with a genuinely pleased grin, then turned to Frisk.

'hey. hey sis.'

 _Oh no. That's the tone he gets when..._

'water we going to do tomorrow?'

 _When he's going to pun._

'Saaaaaans. How long have you been sitting on that?!'

'a while. knock knock.'

Frisk gave a long-suffering sigh. 'Who's there?'

'rain.'

She shot him a baleful look. 'Rain who?'

'rain't ya glad we're not at the lab anymore?'

Despite herself, Frisk snickered a bit. "I'd be more so if I didn't have to listen to your _awful_ jokes." She said aloud.

Sans fixed her with an absolutely pathetic stare.

"No puppy eyes!" She bopped him on the snout and he let out the blaster equivalent of a laugh.

'let's get some sleep.'

The girl nodded, and the two fell into uneasy silence.

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 _It was dark, but for once she wasn't scared. Frisk wandered aimlessly through the dark void, wondering briefly where she was and how she got there._

 _She wasn't concerned, though. Upon examining her feelings, she realized she actually felt content, calm, and safe._

 _The shapeless darkness began to shift around her, and then she was standing back in the too-hot place that the lab had been in, the place Alphys had called Hotland._

 _"Hello."_

 _Still not feeling any sense of danger or fear, Frisk turned._

 _A monster was standing there. She was quite lovely, a bird-creature with dark red and yellow feathers and burning green eyes. The feathers on her head were held back with a headband, pulling them up and away from the thick square glasses resting on her big bronze beak._

 _Though the monster woman had a lab coat on like the Doctor, Frisk still felt no fear. She raised her hand and waved in response to the greeting._

 _The bird woman chuckled._

 _"Who are you?" Frisk asked, though she had a suspicion._

 _"My name is, or rather was, Roslyn." The woman smiled. "And it's my soul that's got yours nice and patched up."_

 _"U-Um, so I stole your soul? You're still_ alive _in there!?"_

 _Roslyn laughed. "Not really. My consciousness was sent on to the next life the moment my body turned to dust."_

 _"Um."_

 _"Then how am I here?"_

 _"Yeah..."_

 _"Well, Frisk, I was just_ dying _to meet you!"_

 _"Oh. My. God." Frisk pointed at her. "_ You _taught Sans how to pun, didn't you!?" She accused. She had been wondering where the skeleton had learned his horrible sense of humor._

 _"Guilty." Roslyn's eyes sparkled._

 _"I_ hate _you!" There wasn't much heat to her words._

 _Roslyn laughed again. "Anyway. I came to your dreams from the Void because I wanted to meet you, and to tell you one thing."_

 _"And that thing is?"_

 _"Not all monsters are bad, like Doctor Gaster. Give others a chance, alright?" Roslyn was giving her a piercing stare that stirred_ something _in Frisk's broken memories._

 _"... I'll try." She promised shakily._

 _The world began to get dark again._

 _"It's time for me to go." Roslyn sighed. "Maybe we'll meet again, maybe not. Take good care of yourself, alright kid? After all, you're technically carrying around part of me!"_

 _Frisk nodded. Hotland faded into blackness and Roslyn simply vanished, leaving the hybrid in complete darkness once again._

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The next morning, Frisk woke up feeling... Off. Her nose was stuffy, she was cold and stiff, her eyes were crusty. Her head hurt and her throat ached.

"Sans, maybe you should carry Paps. I'm not feeling so good..." Even her voice was ridiculously hoarse.

Her brother gave her a worried look. Frisk's eyes were glassy and unfocused, and she was flushed and giving off more heat than usual.

"I'll be _fine_ , Sans. We gotta keep moving." She sneezed again.

"okay..." Sans said dubiously, scooping Papyrus into his arms.

The trio set off.

The caverns of Waterfall were as wet and winding as ever. It was almost ridiculous, and definitely frustrating. They walked in silence, occasionally broken by Frisk sneezing loudly. After a few hours, though, the sneezes became loud, wet coughs.

Wet, _everything_ was wet here.

Frisk continued to insist that she was fine, and that they _needed_ to keep moving. Sans wasn't buying it, but the press of time was still there, so he dropped it.

It was maybe half an hour after Frisk started coughing that she stopped short with a small gasp, looking straight up.

Sans spun quickly, eye already glowing, but he calmed when he realized Frisk was only looking at the cavern's ceiling, which was made of dark stone and positively covered in small, sparkling white stones. It was absolutely _breathtaking_ , and he found himself staring. He'd never seen anything like this in the lab. _Never_...

Papyrus babbled happily, staring upwards. "PRETTY!"

He turned his attention back to Frisk, who was grinning widely as she stared upwards, her wings fanned out full-sized behind her. "Wow!" She squeaked, her voice still in bad shape. "They're like the stars!"

"wait, really?" Sans looked back up, shifting Pap so the toddler could get a better look. The cavern ceiling did rather resemble her description.

"Yeah... The real ones are prettier, though." Frisk said with all the surety a young girl could manage.

Even so, her brother was feeling something that had been in small supply in his short life. Staring up at the cavern ceiling, at the closest thing to stars monster kind had seen in generations, Sans found himself filled with hope.

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The trio of children continued on their way, each feeling comfortable in the easy silence that was only broken by Frisk's occasional coughing and the sloshing of the couple feet of standing water they were wading through.

Frisk spent most of the time during her walk thinking about Roslyn and her appearance in her dream, and trying to remember what was so familiar about her piercing stare. When that started to make her head hurt, she started to daydream about being warm and dry. She was getting really tired, but Sans still seemed to be going strong, and she didn't want them to have to stop on her account. They really needed to get as far away from Hotland as they could.

According to Alphys, who had managed to give them a brief set of instructions when she shoved her bag into Sans's arms before she ran off to distract the Royal Guard that had been coming around the corner, beyond Waterfall was Snowdin, and that was as far as they would be able to go, because the Ruins were sealed off. She'd also mentioned they could find better clothing at the dump, here in Waterfall, and that they would have to pass through the dump to get to Snowdin. She'd said they couldn't miss it.

So Frisk knew they still had quite a ways to go before they should stop. She was hoping that they could find this 'dump' _before_ they stopped. She was quite cold.

Huh. Was she shivering? Sans and Papyrus were fine, Paps had even fallen asleep in Sans's arms, why was she so damn cold?

"frisk? do you need to rest?"

" _No_!" She snapped. The effect was ruined by the uncontrollable coughing fit she fell into immediately after she spoke. Her chest hurt really bad... She wiped her eyes, which were full of water. She wasn't certain if it was the rain or the coughing that caused it.

"frisk," Sans scolded lightly. "please don't lie to me."

Frisk took a shuddering breath. "I would love to stop and rest, Sans, but we _can't_. We have to keep moving."

Her brother probably would be frowning if he could. As it was, she could tell by the shape of his eye sockets that he didn't like it.

"Sans, please. Let's at least try and make it to that 'dump' place."

He sighed, relenting. "okay. it's not like we have a lot of choice, huh? and maybe finding some better clothes will help you."

Frisk smiled gratefully at him. "You're the best, Sans."

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It was another hour of walking before they found it. Piles and piles of _stuff_ , as far as they could see. Sans kept a tight hold on Papyrus as they entered the winding path, mercifully free of water. Neither of the older children were under any illusions that if they lost their younger sibling in this maze, they would find him again.

"BROTHER!"

"what's up, paps?"

The smallest member of the group pointed up at a higher part of the nearest pile. "LIKE IT, PRETTY COLOR, LIKE SISTER!"

Frisk peered up at the corner of red cloth sticking out of the pile, before starting to climb.

"frisk!"

She ignored Sans's distracting yell, instead focusing on getting to the bit of bright red cloth several feet above her head. Handhold, handhold, foothold, foothold, hand, hand, foot, foot, Hand, foot, got it! She grabbed the cloth and activated her magic, turning her soul dark blue and allowing herself to tumble back into open air, where she started her controlled descent.

Or, it _was_ controlled, until she abruptly lost control of her magic due to another coughing fit. Thankfully, Sans had been watching, and caught her soul in his own before she'd fallen more than an inch. He lowered her to the ground, scolding and lecturing her for her carelessness, but Frisk didn't hear a word. Her head was spinning, her stomach churning. She rolled over and began to heave, barely having time to ensure that the cloth was out of the way as she helplessly vomited bile onto the path.

Everything hurt. Her head, her lungs, her joints.

She shouldn't have done that. She _really_ shouldn't have done that.

The world around Frisk was muted as though she'd stuffed cotton in her ears and put gauze over her eyes. She was vaguely aware of the hand rubbing circles on her back, trying to soothe her as she continued to dry heave despite having eaten anything in almost two days.

It was too much. Blackness was creeping into the corners of her vision. Her head swam.

Darkness crept over her mind.


	3. Unwell

_/Oh, you've got to be kidding me./_

 _Frisk's ears rung with the words, and they echoed in the endless blackness that was much less comfortable than the last time she was surrounded by it._

 _/Come on, Featherbutt! Stay Determined! I don't want to die_ again _./ The voice was loud, brash, female, and_ very _annoyed. It rattled around and around the empty void of darkness and made Frisk feel almost like she was vibrating uncontrollably._

 _"Um... What?" Frisk clutched her temples. Just speaking made her feel like she was shaking apart, shattering into billions of pieces._

 _/Look, kid, if you die,_ so do I _. And I don't want to go through that again! So wake up, dammit!/_

 _There was the sensation of being shoved through a tiny tube and Frisk screamed, her head pounding._

 _/Okay, that didn't work._ Sorry _./_

 _Frisk didn't respond to the Voice, though if she could've she'd have had a few choice words for it - some of the Doctor's favorite curses._

 _/Okay, let's try this instead.../_

 _Shadows swirled about in front of Frisk like a solid entity, beginning to change color and form. There was a deafening bang, and then Frisk was flying back through the black haze, landing painfully on her rear._

 _Footsteps. Then, a single olive-skinned hand sticking out of a red sleeve was in front of her, offering her help up._

 _Frisk took it and was pulled to her feet._

 _"This better, Featherbutt?" Demanded the owner of the hand._

 _Frisk stared. The human was older than her, a teenager for sure, with considerably shorter hair that was much shaggier, though the same muddy color as her own. She had on a baggy red windbreaker and a pair of brown slacks. The girl's eyes were the same shade of red as hers, which was odd because Frisk was pretty sure red eyes weren't the norm for humans. Hers certainly hadn't been red before her change._

 _At least now the other girl's voice wasn't crushing Frisk's mind like before._

 _"Yes... Who are you?" Speaking came much easier this time, the pain still there but blunted considerably._

 _Red eyes rolled up towards the non-existing ceiling. "You can call me Chara. And I'm dead. Except, somehow, I'm_ here _in your tiny little mind and weird-ass soul." She pointed at Frisk. "So you're not allowed to die, you hear me?!"_

 _"_ Loud _and clear." Frisk rubbed her temples again._

 _"Look, it was bad enough being at the mercy of that madman and not even being aware enough to talk to you. Now, not even a day free and here you are lying half-dead in a_ dump _! I so did not sign up for this!" Chara ranted._

 _Frisk sighed, not gracing that with a response._

 _"Okay, so now you need to wake up. There's crazy shit happening outside your cozy little mindscape, you know."_

 _"Huh? How do I wake up? And what do you mean mindscape? Why are you even in my head? Am I going crazy now? First the dead lady, now this..."_

 _"I dunno how you wake up, I'm not the one who's unconscious!" Chara effectively ignored the rest of Frisk's comments._

 _Frisk made an executive decision to use some of those cuss words she'd been too disoriented to use earlier._

 _"Sheesh, kid, you kiss your brothers with that mouth? You're what, four, right?"_

 _Frisk felt her cheeks grow hot. "I'm almost_ six _! I'm just kinda short."_

 _Chara scoffed. "Look, four or five, you're still way too young to be using that language."_

 _"Whatever." Frisk rolled her own eyes._

 _"Huh. Maybe you're more ballsy than I thought. You still gotta wake up, though, Featherbutt."_

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It was an average day for Toriel. She walked down the road from Napstablook's snail farm, her second-to-last stop on today's grocery run. She only planned to stop at the dump and see if there was anything interesting she could add to her book collections or her toy sets for the children that may fall into the Ruins.

It was an average day, but that was quickly going to change.

"please, frisk! you _gotta_ wake up! you _can't_ fall down, _please_..." Toriel could hear the desperate begging of what sounded like a young child, coupled with the sudden start of an even younger one wailing, and instantly dropped her purchases and bolted in the direction of the helpless sounding pleas.

What she saw made her stop short. Two young skeletons and a human child were in the middle of the path. The girl (A human, one she hadn't met in the Ruins! Where had she come from?!) was lying on her back, her long brown hair splayed out beneath her. One of the skeletons was shaking her shoulder, his hands lit up with flickering green light – healing magic, though it was pretty clear that he wasn't able to keep a steady flow of it going. He had fat tears made of blue magic tracing down his cheeks as he tried to rouse the human. The third child was just a toddler, crying loudly in distress, probably in empathy for the other, because he seemed to be too young to understand what was actually happening.

"By the stars..." Toriel gasped.

Instantly, the skeleton boy was on his feet, his right eye lighting up with a blue flare of light. He literally _growled_ at her, but she could sense the panic he was feeling.

"get away. stay away from her! keep away from us!" He was holding his hand out, and she could see the nearly formless, uncontrolled potential for destruction his magic held as blue light whirled wildly within his eye socket and around the limb.

Toriel backed away slowly, placing her hands up placatingly. "Please, child, I am not going to harm any of you. I swear it." This was not good. She had to calm him down. "Please, I can help her." She allowed her own, much more powerful healing magic to pool in her hands. The child's eye flickered uncertainly. He clearly knew what green magic was for, he'd been trying to use it after all, but he just as clearly was too afraid to let her near.

Perhaps it was her intimidating size. Plenty of young ones had shied away from her at first. Even her own, lovely, precious Chara had been afraid of her at first. She very slowly knelt down. "Please, child? I only want to help." She offered him a small smile. "What happened to you three?" _Where did they come from? Why were they dressed as though they'd walked out of a hospital?_ The boys, Toriel could understand having possibly been in a hospital. But the girl would've been recognized for what she was right away in an environment like that, and thanks to _Asgore_ she would most certainly not have survived the trip.

"she's sick." The boy mumbled finally. "we were walkin' through waterfall."

In this cold? In those gowns? No wonder the girl was ill.

"I can help her."

The skeleton closed his eye sockets. "i-if you h-hurt her..."

Perhaps... Perhaps this young one had befriended the girl and another monster had attacked her? Toriel hoped that was the reason he was so afraid of her. It wasn't a good thing, but it was certainly a better option than some of the _other_ ideas starting to float around in her head.

He opened his eye sockets to stare directly into her own, the lights that were his pupils simply gone, snuffed out like a candle.

Toriel, the technical Queen of the Underground, and a fighter who'd been at the front lines of most of the Great War, felt genuine fear for just a second, looking into the empty eyes of this tiny little skeleton. She swallowed, her throat suddenly feeling very, very dry. Why did it feel like she was being judged for every single thing, good or bad, that she'd ever done? She was practically seeing her life flash before her eyes. The War, her time with _Asgore_ , her two beautiful, amazing children, their deaths and her leaving her husband, her LOVE, her love... The fallen humans and her attempts to keep them safe. It all flew by too fast for her to see, but she knew, she _knew_... Every sin, every virtue crawled on her back under the scrutiny of this child's gaze.

Suddenly, he stepped back, away from the girl.

"if you hurt her," He said in a slightly stronger voice, " _you're gonna have a bad time_."

He was letting her help her. _He was letting him help her!_

Quickly, she knelt beside the young girl. Then, Toriel carefully, gently summoned the girl's soul.

 _What._

She stared at the little heart shape, floating above the girl's chest, before very cautiously taking it into her hands and cradling it like a mother to her babe. The small, right-side-up heart looked almost like a jigsaw puzzle. Jagged patches of white marred the primary red coloring. It... unsettled her. This was not normal.

Toriel allowed her hands to light up with a green aura, calmly and efficiently pumping soothing magic into the quivering soul.

The girl groaned.

"frisk?!"

"No'so loud, Sans..." She mumbled. "Head 'urts."

"Do not fear, my child." Toriel said gently, the flow of magic continuing. "I am working on making you feel better."

"'Kay, Mama." The girl mumbled. Her eyes were still closed. The Queen stiffened.

The skeleton boy glanced sharply at her, before turning his attention back to the girl. He'd picked up the toddler; Toriel hadn't even noticed the baby had stopped crying.

After a moment, he gained an expression of confusion. "frisk? what the _hell_ was that?" Toriel had to resist the urge to scold him for swearing. She had no doubt that would not be productive.

"Dunno." The girl cracked her eyes open, red orbs flicking over to look at the skeleton. "She just was there."

The goat woman rather felt like she was hearing half a conversation, as though she were listening in on a cell phone conversation. "Excuse me, Frisk?" She assumed that was the young lady's name, after all, it was what the boy had called her.

"Yeah?" She seemed a bit more alert now, but much less wary than the skeleton.

"How do you feel, small one?"

Without hesitation, she replied in a monotone. "I am functioning properly. Feelings of nausea seem to have subsided, the stabbing pain in the back of my skull has receded, my body temperature seems to have stabilized."

Toriel eyed the girl worriedly. What kind of answer was that?

Frisk's expression became one of confusion, briefly. "I mean to say, I am fine. I feel much better. Thank you." She sat up. Toriel noticed she had been lying on something.

"Child, is this yours?" She reached behind the girl to pick up a very long, bright red scarf.

Frisk shook her head. "I got it out of the pile." She pointed up at the nearest trash pile. "Paps wanted it."

Paps? Well, if she was Frisk, and she'd called the older skeleton Sans, perhaps the toddler was Paps?

"Well, if it's in the trash, then it's up for grabs." Toriel smiled. "But it should be washed before you give it t the baby. He could get sick, otherwise." She handed the strip of cloth to the child.

Frisk nodded with an extremely serious expression, getting to her feet. Toriel watched her stretch her limbs, joints popping loudly.

And then, to her utter shock, Frisk rolled her shoulders and a pair of large, red and gold wings extended slowly from her back, twitching in various directions as Frisk stretched them as well. That done, she seamlessly folded them back into place against her back. Lastly, she clasped her hands and rolled her shoulders again, causing loud pops to echo through the cavern. But that wasn't what caught Toriel's attention. She reached out, quick as a flash, and snatched the girl's right hand.

There was a metal plate, drilled right into the skin and bones. _WDG-3 F_.

She glanced down at Sans, who was staring at her, and, much more slowly, giving plenty of time for him to pull away, took his right hand. Just like Frisk, he had a metal plate drilled directly into the bone. _WDG-1 S._

Horror stricken, she reached for the now-sleeping toddler. This prompted Sans to growl again, shifting position so that he was hunched over the small monster.

"Does he have one?" Toriel was aware her voice was trembling, though with what emotion she wasn't certain. Anger, fear, disgust, unease? All of the above?

Slowly, Sans nodded.

 _The hospital gowns._

 _Frisk's jigsaw puzzle soul._

 _Why they were out alone in Waterfall._

 _The fact that Frisk had not passed through the Ruins._

 _Sans's fear of her._

 _The metal plates._

 _And, now that she was looking at these children, really looking at them, she could see dozens of scars. Pinpricks, chips in bones, long, thin scars in Frisk's flesh that were dare she say **surgical**._

Toriel's sharp mind was piecing together the evidence, and she did not like what she was coming up with.

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Frisk opened her eyes, blearily. Sans was being loud, she was fairly sure he was saying her name.

"Not so loud, Sans. My head hurts." Or at least, that's what she had tried to say. It came out rather slurred. Huh.

"Do not fear, my child." /Oh my god it's Mom what is she doing here Mama I'm sorry I missed you so much Mama _I'msosorry!_ / "I am working on making you feel better."

Chara's jumbled pleas in the back of Frisk's mind mingled with her confusion, and she almost automatically responded, "'Kay, Mama."

Her head started to clear, and she realized too late what she'd said. She could sense Sans's fear over their bond.

'frisk, why did you call her that? you haven't even looked at the lady. and what in the world does it even mean?'

/'Mama' is another word for 'Mother'. Frisk probably just called her that because I was panicking at my first sight of my mother in ages./

Confusion, disorientation, and fear all transferred easily from Sans's mind to Frisk's, but the part-human was more concerned with the fact that Chara's appearance in her dream was apparently not just a figment of her fever-addled mind.

/'Course I'm real, Featherbutt./

"frisk? what the _hell_ was that?" Sans demanded aloud.

"Dunno. She was just there." Frisk responded, finally opening her eyes to cast a quick eye over the woman holding her soul. Then she looked over to Sans without moving her head.

/I'm not a she!/ Chara complained. /I'm a he!/

'You sure looked like a girl.' Frisk mentally muttered.

/Look, this isn't the time for a gender v. sex argument, m'kay? I'll explain it later. Just, I'm a he. Sheesh./

'Okay. Question. What's a Mother?'

/You don't kno- Oh, right, of course you don't. A mother is someone who will love you unconditionally, who will take care of you and protect you and teach you. And this woman, Toriel, was my mother when I was still alive. I swear, you can trust her./

'how do we know you're not just lying?!' Sans demanded.

/Because my only goal at the moment is to keep Featherbutt here in one piece because if she dies, then so do I? Come on, kid, you can feel my sincerity as much as I can feel your rampant paranoia./

'I'll give her a chance.' Frisk thought, remembering her dream conversation (that may or may not have been real) with Roslyn.

"Excuse me, Frisk?"

"Yeah?" She turned her attention back to Toriel.

"How do you feel, small one?"

Frisk barely thought about her response. The Doctor always wanted a certain type of response to that kind of query, and he wanted it right away. "I am functioning properly. Feelings of nausea seem to have subsided, the stabbing pain in the back of my skull has receded, my body temperature seems to have stabilized."

/Wow, you're hopeless./ Chara muttered. /Try, "I'm feeling better' or "Fine' or something. And don't forget to thank her, it's only polite./

'no need to be a bitch.'

/Oh, as if you're any less of an asshole, kid?/

Frisk tuned out the brewing argument. Now that Chara seemed to have joined their mental circuit, she had little doubt that she'd get plenty of practice at ignoring her bondmates. More than she already got tuning out Papyrus's inane, often nonsensical baby-thoughts.

"I mean to say, I am fine. I feel much better. Thank you." She tried. Toriel seemed satisfied with this response.

Frisk sat up, and Toriel reached past her to pick up the cloth she'd pulled out of the heap. It was very long, and rectangular.

Frisk shook her head. "I got it out of the pile." She pointed up at the nearest trash pile. "Paps wanted it."

"Well, if it's in the trash, then it's up for grabs." Toriel said, smiling. "But it should be washed before you give it t the baby. He could get sick, otherwise." She handed the strip of cloth to Frisk, who took it with a serious nod.

Frisk stood, stretching luxuriously. She could feel her joints popping, it felt wonderful. It didn't hurt that the small cacophony in the back of her mind that had been Sans and Chara's argument had subsided for the moment. She made sure to stretch her wings, they tended to get sore if she just left them.

Suddenly Toriel snatched her wrist and looked directly at her plate. Frisk blinked as she moved onto Sans's, her brother being too shocked to react as she pulled his hand close to peer at his own plate.

It was when she reached for Papyrus that Sans reacted, moving into a position to better protect their brother and growling warningly. Frisk felt her own magic bubbling under her skin, and started to ready threads of purple magic, in case she needed to pull them apart.

"Does he have one?" Toriel asked, voice trembling with an unidentifiable emotion.

Sans nodded slowly.

Toriel's face darkened. Frisk could feel Sans tensing, could feel Chara's sudden unease. Felt her own fear and distress.

/She's _not_ mad at you, she's _not_ mad at you, she's _not_ mad at you, she's _not_ mad at you, _she'snotmadatyou_./ Chara chanted the words like a mantra, trying to keep them from lashing out.

"Who did this to you?" Toriel demanded. "I will burn their very souls into ash." Her eyes were flashing, she was shaking in barely controlled rage. "Nobody has the right to harm children like this. _Nobody_! No matter _what_ the cause!"

Sans clutched Papyrus tighter, starting to shake in fear. The toddler awoke and began to cry again. Frisk moved over to huddle beside her siblings.

The noise seemed to snap Toriel out of it, prompting her to notice the fear of the elder two. She knelt down to their level. "I am so very sorry, children. I did not mean to frighten you. It's not your fault, please do not fear me. I am not angry at you. I am only angry at the person or people whom gave you those scars, and who drilled those bits of metal into your hands." Her voice was so soft and soothing.

It sounded like lies. But it sounded sincere.

Frisk and Sans didn't know what to think. Chara urged them to tell, but they were terrified.

What if she gave them back to the Doctor?

Should they tell her about the labs, about Hotland, about Alphys?

"You do not have to do anything you do not wish."

There was never an option.

"I will not press you."

Why was there a choice?

/My Mother will love you as she loved me if you give her a chance. You will be _safe_ with her./

There was no such thing as safe for them.

"Would you like to come with me? I will take you to my home."

 _Home_. The word stirred Frisk's damaged memories like nothing else before.

"You will be very happy there, I think."

The smell of something sweet, warmth filling her body, an all-encompassing feeling of safety and hope.

"I will protect you, if you'll have me. I swear it on all that I am."

Frisk felt Sans break just a split second before she did, the feelings she was sending over their bond too much for someone who had never known them.

Bawling like the child he was, Sans threw himself and Papyrus into Toriel's arms and sobbed. Frisk was right behind him.

"Shhhh... Everything will be alright, my children." Toriel cooed, wrapping her long, warm arms around them. "I promise."


	4. Drops of Jupiter

_**IMPORTANT STUFF: I'm thinking of doing some bonus material for every five chapters of Counting Stars. With that in mind, may I present the first segment: Ask the Cast!**_

 _ **Just review (or comment, if you're reading this on Ao3, or submit an ask if you're on tumblr!) with your question. You can also shoot me a pm on FFN. (Under 'Insanity Allegra', of course.) Please put CSCQ1 in the subject line.**_

 _ **Rules:**_

 _ **1\. Keep in mind that whatever events that are caused by Ask the Cast will be non-canon. I.e. Asking Goat Mom to punch Evil Dad in the face will likely result in a**_ **humerus** ** _scene where Toriel breaks into Gaster's lab, runs up to him, clocks him in the nose, and runs out, but that will not have happened in-story._**

 _ **2\. Questions that may bring spoilers into play may or may not be answered, depending on the severity of the spoiler in question.**_

 _ **3\. Keep it PG, there are youngin's heeeeere.**_

 _ **4\. Make sure you specify who the question is for.**_

 _ **Characters you can ask as of now:**_

 _ **Evil Dad (Dr. Gaster)**_

 _ **Ghost Mom (Roslyn's Ghost)**_

 _ **Big Bro (Sans)**_

 _ **Featherbutt (Frisk)**_

 _ **Ghost Bro/He Who Is Trapped In Frisk's Head (Chara)**_

 _ **Cinnabun (Papyrus)**_

 _ **Goat Mom (Toriel)**_

 _ **Hot Dad/He Who Is Still Not In The Story Yet Despite Being Planned To Be In Chapter 2 (Grillby)**_

 _ **If I don't get enough questions, I'll try to come up with something else to do for chapter 5, and reschedule this for chapter 10.**_

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Once they'd managed to pull themselves together, Toriel guided them back to where she'd left her groceries and retrieved the various bags.

Frisk frowned. "U-uh, Miss Toriel? Why is that one all squirmy?" She pointed at one of the bags. Sans was nervous, and so she hoped that she could put him at ease if she took the initiative and got everyone talking. That didn't mean she wasn't nervous at speaking out of turn. It was a habit the Doctor had not liked, and had earned her plenty of punishments.

"Oh, this one is full of snails, my child!" Toriel smiled. She opened it so Frisk and her brothers could see.

Frisk squeaked. They were all squirmy and move-y! It was so _freaky_.

"Is something wrong?"

"Uh... Can I h-hold one?" Maybe they wouldn't be so gross if it was just one.

Toriel blinked. "Of course." She very carefully removed one from the bag.

/Mom likes to eat those./

Frisk eyed it with a frown. "This... Is food?" She took the little creature into her hand. It didn't _look_ very edible. Sans leaned over and poked it. Both of them jumped at the clinking nose his boney finger made when it came in contact with the shell.

Frisk's stomach rumbled. The last time they had eaten anything had to be the last time they were given rations by the Doctor, because they'd taken the food Alphys had brought for them along with them, and other than feeding Paps a bit of one of the sandwiches, they had been saving those.

Still, the snail was moving around on her palm, leaving a trail of goo, and it really didn't look all that appetizing.

"Oh, not yet. I'd have to cook it first, Frisk." Toriel laughed. "Neither you nor the snail would enjoy it if you ate it before I cooked it."

Well, that made a bit more sense.

Sans poked its shell again. "w-what's this?" He was asking a question! Granted, he was obviously uncomfortable, afraid of punishment for speaking out of turn, but he'd taken the chance! Frisk had heard maybe three or four questions from Sans over her time in the lab. The Doctor hadn't liked it when they asked about trivial things. She was so proud!

"That's its shell, Sans. It protects the snail from getting hurt, and it's also the snail's house." Toriel said in a lecture-y tone of voice that wasn't at all condescending like the Doctor's own had been on the few occasions they'd gotten an explanation on how things worked or what they were.

"It's kind of cute!" Frisk said, rubbing one of its antennae.

"can we call it _sheldon_?"

Frisk nearly shrieked, barely holding the sound back. He'd literally just learned that word and her freaking brother was already punning!

Toriel snorted. "Or possibly _Shelly_ , _Shelly_ the snail."

'Great. She puns, too.'

/Nonstop./ Chara groaned. /I'd almost forgotten./

'heh.' Sans's mental voice was somewhat smug. She knew he enjoyed razzing her with puns and bad jokes. To be honest, Frisk wasn't really sure why she was so annoyed by them. Maybe it was just the principle of the thing?

Speaking of the principle of the thing...

'Is it too late to go back to the lab?' Frisk mused playfully, giving her usual token protest.

'yes.' Sans snapped.

'Too soon to joke?'

'it will never be late enough.'

'Noted, bro. Sorry.'

"Come, children. I will lead you to my home." Toriel said, picking up her bags again. "Once we get there, we can eat."

The prospect of food washed away any lingering doubts the elder duo held, and they hurried after her, Frisk holding the snail in one hand and Papyrus's hand in the other. Sans held Paps's other small hand, and carried the red scarf Frisk had nearly died over on his shoulder.

"Hey, wait." She said suddenly. Toriel stopped to see Frisk staring at another trash heap. The little girl raised her hand (the one previously holding Paps's), her eyes and the feathers in her hair flowing smoothly from red and yellow to a uniform dark blue. A large blue jacket was engulfed in the aura of gravity magic, and Frisk bit her lip as she focused on pulling it loose and down without disturbing the rest of the pile.

Why hadn't she done this for the scarf?

/You were kind of out of it with fever./ Chara shrugged.

Fair enough. The jacket landed safely in her arms and she held it up to the minimal light. 'It's the same color as your magic, Sans!'

'that thing? it's way too big for me! it would swallow me! i'd be _swimming with the jacket fish_!'

/That was awful./

Frisk nodded. 'But it looks so soft and warm, Sans! You'll love it!'

Toriel cleared her throat. "Did you want that, my child?"

Frisk pointed at Sans. She was getting rather annoyed with all the talking she'd had to do lately.

"Ah! For Sans!" Toriel held the jacket up to the skeleton. "It seems rather large, but I'm sure he'll grow into it, if he wants it."

Sans eyed the cloth, and then Frisk's hopeful expression and sighed. 'It does look comfy...' He nodded at Toriel.

"Then we shall take it home with us, and I shall wash it!" Toriel cheered. "Do you see anything you'd like for you, Frisk?"

The sort-of-human looked around a bit before frowning and shaking her head.

"Alright."

"frisk."

She turned. Sans was holding out a single glove, jet black and fingerless.

Frisk took it. It was soft and stretchy. She rather liked the feel of it between her fingers.

'i know you don't like looking at your plate. anymore than i do.'

"You take it." Frisk insisted. Sans always got so depressed when he looked at his hand. She knew he'd been awake when it was installed. It had to bring back awful memories.

Sans shook his head. "it's made for humans, sis. i don't have enough _meat on my bones_."

"NONONO!" Papyrus whined. "BAD!"

"I'm with him! _Nonono_! No more puns!"

Toriel laughed.

Frisk sighed and tried it on. 'It's a little big, but I like it.'

"Ah, I see you've found something after all." Toriel smiled. It seemed like she never stopped smiling... Frisk handed it to her, and she slipped the glove into the pocket of the hoodie. "Shall we go, my children?"

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Frisk and Sans exchanged a glance.

'This is the last chance. If you want us to leave...'

Sans closed his eye sockets. He didn't _want_ to trust this woman, he wanted to take his sister and his brother and hide from every single other monster in the Underground, but she practically radiated peace, warmth, and safety. He wanted to be wary and suspicious, but he was so tired of being afraid... He wanted to believe that everything would be alright, like Toriel had promised. He wanted to believe that Frisk and Papyrus could be safe and happy.

He wanted to hand control to someone else. He couldn't handle the responsibility of caring for his sister and his brother on his own. Barely two days and Frisk had already nearly fallen down because he was absolutely _useless_.

He could feel her disapproval at that thought, but it was true. It was _so_ true. There were a dozen ways he could've helped; he could've made them rest, given her food, he should've stopped her from climbing that trash pile but instead he just stood there like a moron, only reacting on instinct when she started to fall.

He wanted to hand control to someone else, because he'd never had control of his own fate before and he didn't know what to do with it.

He _couldn't handle the responsibility_. He was only a child, barely two years older than Frisk. He _shouldn't have to handle the responsibility_.

'i want to go with her.'

Frisk nodded. "Yes, Miss Toriel." She said as she took Papyrus's hand. "We're ready."

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Toriel was getting the sense that these three, or at least the elder two, were communicating without actually talking. The odd half-conversations they had made her feel incredibly uneasy, though she did her best not to show it. It wasn't unheard of for monsters to be capable of telepathy. It wasn't unheard of for humans to be capable of telepathy.

The thing was, the most prominent reason that monsters (or humans and monsters) could speak over a mental link was because they had bonded. But children this young shouldn't _be_ bonded. It was a safeguard built into the very souls of humans and monsters- souls would only connect and touch on their own when the parties involved were emotionally ready. And children were psychologically incapable of that level of emotional maturity.

Which meant, if they were bonded, it had been _forced_. It _was_ possible to force a bond, but doing so required an outside party and a lot of pain. A soul that wasn't ready to bond would repel the attempted mate like a magnet, and trying to force them to touch was excruciating. Survival instincts would kick in, and the parties attempting to bond would let their souls go long before they touched. That was why it required an outside party- an extra person to do the actual deed.

If somebody had violated these children in that manner, Toriel wouldn't even leave _dust_ behind for the funeral.

Putting on a smile for the trio, she led them into the shortcut she used to get from the Ruins to Waterfall without having to take a two-day walk and without having to be seen in Snowdin, like she would if she took the Riverperson.

As they passed the multitude of echo flowers on the path, Toriel took it upon herself to explain what they were and how they worked.

Papyrus had great fun babbling into one and having it repeat his baby talk back at him over and over again until Toriel insisted they move on. She noted the the toddler didn't seem to know a lot of words, but the ones he did were pronounced perfectly and used to great effect.

"BROTHER! SISTER! _UP UP_!"

Frisk swung the toddler onto her shoulders without hesitation. He locked his legs around her neck and buried his phalanges into her hair. "YAY! _UP UP_!"

The winged girl merely grinned.

Toriel wished she had her camera. They were so cute!

Eventually, they made it to the door leading into the Ruins. Toriel unlocked it, gesturing for the children to follow her inside.

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Sans looked around the pink-painted walls of the tunnel in interest. The first time he'd seen the color was when Alphys first arrived in the lab. It was a nice color. Something _different_ from the grays and greens and browns and blues of the lab, and the pale and red and yellow of his sister, and the gray and blue and orange that was him and Paps.

It was a nice color, with no negative memories attached.

"It will take me a little while to prepare our food." Toriel began. "Would you like me to run you a warm bath? The three of you are filthy."

Sans blinked, exchanging a feeling of mutual confusion with Frisk over their connection. Frisk gave him a mental nudge, urging him to ask what the word meant, and he would've frowned at her if he could. But since he couldn't, and Toriel was clearly waiting on a response, and the last time he'd asked a question it had turned out alright, he steeled himself and asked.

"what... what is a bath, miss toriel?"

The large, fuzzy woman stopped walking. There was a shadow over her eyes.

She was _angry_.

Sans whimpered and took a step back, shrinking in on himself. "m'sorry, i'll be quiet..." Could he grab his siblings and make it to the door back to Waterfall before she caught him? Probably not. She had much longer legs than he did in this form, and to take the time to change to his blaster form would waste too many precious seconds.

Toriel visibly calmed herself, speaking softly but through gritted teeth. "I am not angry with you, my child. You do not know what a bath is?"

Sans shook his head frantically. Frisk shot him a worried look.

"Okay." Toriel took a shaky breath, dropping down to her knees to be on his level. "It is _okay_ , Sans. It's not your fault, my child. I am _not_ angry with you, I promise. I am sorry if I frightened you again." She spoke firmly now, as if she could make him believe her by sheer force of will, by sheer determination. " _I will never harm you_. Please do not forget that."

Sans swallowed down the lump forming in his non-existent throat, then nodded slowly.

Toriel sighed, then brightened. "Well, I think you will enjoy this. Come along, my children! I shall show you the wonders of a warm bath!"

Exchanging a final, concerned glance, Frisk and Sans followed her up the short flight of stairs and into the house proper.


	5. Scars

**Important stuff:**

 **I GOT FANART. I'M DEAD. AND TYPING THIS AS A GHOST. (That's why this chapter took so long XD Actually, the beginning fought me really hard. I'm still not entirely satisfied, but...)**

 **AMAZING FANART:** (http):/(artisteiffel).(deviantart).(com/art/Counting-Stars-603268278)

 **Ask the Cast: I only got one question so far, so asks are still open and I'll be doing Ask the Cast for chapter ten, instead. Questions make me very happy, and you'll be able to post them all the way until chapter 9, so don't hesitate, interrogate!**

 **The bonus material can be found at the bottom, after the chapter. Hopefully it'll help you guys unwind after the last part of this chapter.**

 **One more thing: This chapter is a bit mood-whiplashy. On the one hand, fluffy bath time scene! On the other? Torture of small children!**

 **Sorry to drag out the AN.**

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Toriel led them into a shiny, clean, pleasant-smelling room. The white tiled floors and shining metal fixtures reminded Sans far, far too much of the lab, but before he could panic, Frisk nudged him and pointed up, at the familiar sight of a shower head sticking out of the wall.

Sans shivered at just the sight of it, but managed not to start hyperventilating. A cold, five minute hose down was much better than being cut open or worse.

Toriel leaned over the enormous white basin against the back wall and fiddled with the knobs. After a moment, water began to pour from the faucet into the basin.

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"Would you like to bathe separately, or together?" Ordinarily, Toriel would've automatically assumed that Frisk would want to have privacy, but these were hardly normal, well-adjusted children. That much was becoming increasingly obvious. And any misstep Toriel may make by assuming these children knew what was going on or by pushing too far or too fast for information or behavior could crush the tentative trust they seemed to be starting to harbor.

"together." Sans still looked afraid. She hadn't missed his involuntary shiver upon looking around the room, either.

Toriel nodded, walking over to the cabinet and removing some children's Shimmerberry Bubblebath. It hadn't yet failed to get a pleased or amazed reaction from the young humans whom had fallen into the Ruins and decided to stay longer than a day or two. She poured two capfuls in, the trio watching her warily.

"Okay. Now we just have to wait for the tub to fill. If you will please wait here, I will return momentarily with some new clothing for you to choose from." After receiving two nods, Toriel left the bathroom.

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"Alright. While we're alone and the lights are on." Frisk said softly, turning to her brother.

Sans obediently tilted his his head so she could see his right eye socket. Frisk hadn't had a chance to look over it in the light yet, despite the Doctor having most recently messed with it almost two weeks ago.

"What did he do?"

"scalpels. the hammer again. another dt injection."

Frisk nodded, gently probing the cracked bone around the dark socket. She was rather surprised Toriel hadn't noticed it yet. Then again, she knew it was there but still couldn't see it for the darkness in Waterfall, and Sans tended not to look others in the eye. Perhaps she really just hadn't had a chance to see it.

"Glow your eyes." She commanded softly. Immediately, the left flared up with bright blue light, but the right remained dark.

"Can you see out of it?"

"not when i'm glowing them or using magic, but normally, yes."

"So no different than before he tried to fix it this time?"

"yeah."

"Does it hurt?"

"yes. but don't worry, i'm used to it, frisk."

"That's not gonna stop me from worrying."

The door creaked open, and Toriel entered the room with a pile of clothes in her arms.

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The linen closet was right across the hall from the bathroom. Toriel heard every word spoken by the duo.

 _Scalpels._

 _Hammer._

 _Injection._

 _Something wrong with one of Sans's eyes._

She had to force herself not to inspect them, to act as if she hadn't overheard.

"These clothes," she said, setting a pile on the counter, "Will probably fit Papyrus. These," she set down the next stack, "are about Sans's size. And these," the third stack landed on the counter, "Will most likely fit Frisk. You three can choose whatever you like from them when you're done in the bath, okay?"

Without waiting for an answer, the goat woman walked over and turned off the water, which had gentle wafts of pleasent-smelling steam rising from it.

"The purpose of a bath is to get you three clean, alright? So you take off your clothes and get in. Here are a couple of washcloths, this is the shampoo, this is the soap, make sure you don't get it in your eyes and don't eat it." Toriel pointed at each object in turn. "All three of you can use the soap, but Frisk is the only one who should use the shampoo. In your hair, alright?" She demonstrated with a small glob of the stuff and a patch of fur on her arm. "If you're careful, you can probably use it on your... Wings... As well. Here are the towels for drying off when you are out of the bath. If you need any help, just call for me. I will be able to hear you from the kitchen."

"... How long are we allowed, Miss Toriel?"

Toriel's heart sank. "As long as you desire, Frisk."

Frisk gave a small, frightened nod.

Toriel tried to give her a reassuring smile, and left them to their own devices.

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Once she was gone, Frisk shucked off her still-damp gown. "I guess we get to be alone for now."

Sans nodded, helping Papyrus out of his. Frisk moved over to peer into the basin. A thick layer of sparkling, sweet-smelling bubbles was lying on top of the water. "This seems oddly familiar... I think we just get in." Her wings twitched in time with her words, half-folded against her bare back, and as she lifted a foot to step into the water, they spread outwards, nearly whacking Sans.

"oi, watch it, sis!"

Frisk wasn't paying attention. She'd put her foot in the liquid and nearly lost all composure, and she _did_ lose her balance. With a yelp, she tumbled into the bath water, all six of her limbs flailing.

But the moment her head was above the bubbles, she relaxed. It was impossible not to. The water was absolutely _perfect_. It was just shy of too hot (warm water was a thing?), and just sitting in it had made her muscles bunch up for a split second and then relax, fully and completely _relax_ for the first time since her wings had grown out. In addition, all of the little aches and pains she had trained herself to block out, the constant sore joints and stiff muscles from day after day of nonstop working, practicing, training, all of the sores and half-healed cuts and scars from being strapped down and cut open, they all vanished. It was heavenly, and she briefly wondered if the sparkling pink and blue bubbles had something to do with it, because she was certain that even _hot_ water wasn't that miraculous. She didn't even notice the involuntary, suspiciously bird-like cooing noises she was making. It was the feeling of her entire body compressing, followed by sweet, sweet release, though, that had initially shocked her into loosing her footing. In the time she could remember fully (which was admittedly less than a year), she'd never felt anything like it.

Getting into a hot bath was the most pleasurable thing she'd _ever_ experienced.

'Sans. Get in.' She demanded over the bond. 'Clothes off. In. _Now_. This is the best thing ever. Hands down.'

Looking dubious, Sans carefully handed her Papyrus, who squealed in delight upon being sat on Frisk's lap, head and neck elevated above the water level. The toddler started playing with the bubbles, grabbing handfuls of them in his tiny phalanges and shaking his little fists. "BROTHER! IS NICE! IN, IN!"

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With that recommendation, Sans was sold. He pulled off his gown, adding it to his siblings' pile, and carefully climbed in.

 _Holy shi_ -

A tiny handful of bubbles smacked him in the face. Papyrus giggled. "NYEH!"

Sans couldn't help it. He laughed, soft and unsure but _there_ , a real, genuine chuckle.

He heard Frisk making an odd noise and looked up at her. She had her palms pressed together in front of her, the biggest grin he had ever seen on her face, and her eyes were practically sparkling. She seemed to be holding back a squeal of delight. "... er, frisk?"

"You laughed, you really _laughed_!" She cheered, throwing her arms around him.

Huh.

/Aw, that's so cute I'm gonna barf./

Sans ignored the peanut gallery, instead squirming out of Frisk's happy hug and grabbing a washcloth. Toriel had said they had as long as they wanted, but he hardly believed that, and he wanted to be certain Papyrus got clean.

He squeezed some of the liquid soap onto the cloth and started rubbing the back of Paps's skull, the toddler relaxing under his touch as Sans scrubbed the graying bone sparkling white.

Frisk did the same with her own washcloth, scrubbing down as much of her skin as she could reach with an air of having done this before, though a long time ago, like she was remembering how as she went.

When Papyrus was clean, they allowed him to play in the water. Neither of them were worried about him going under, as it was impossible for skeletons to drown thanks to their lack of a _need_ to breathe. Frisk took the washcloth from Sans and his hand, and started gently cleaning out all the little cracks and crevices in between his phalanges. He _wanted_ to tell her he was perfectly capable of washing himself, but it felt good, and she had that pleased little grin she always got whenever she was relaxed, so he let her. After a few minutes, she moved up to his arm, biting her lip as she carefully wiped the large gouge in the bone. It was tinted with red at the very bottom of the crevice, marrow just a hair away from leaking out.

"I'm sorry-"

"it's not your fault!" Sans snapped.

"If I had been better-"

"you did your best!"

"Well apparently my best wasn't enough!" Frisk spat. "He could've killed you, all because I couldn't figure out how to trigger that damn purple magic again!"

"but he was the _reason_!" Sans growled. "If he had given you more time like you'd asked, you'd-"

"NO MORE MAD!"

They both whipped their heads around to stare at Papyrus.

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"heh. sorry, paps. guess we got a bit excited, there." Sans's grin was hollow, his pupils pinpricks.

Frisk knew the feeling.

Papyrus sniffled, and his sister frowned. Now they were three sad kids in a bathtub.

She always screwed _everything_ up. She got Sans hurt the day before their escape, she got sick and slowed them down when they were going through Waterfall, and now she'd made both of her brothers upset just minutes after Sans had laughed for the first time in ages.

 _It wasn't fair_.

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 _"Subject S-1. You will be in the combat simulator for the day." The Doctor shoved Sans into the room, turning on the power. Immediately, the inside became a virtual reality simulation of a human city. Frisk watched through the observation window as Sans began the laborious process of killing each and every fake human in the city._

 _She hated that thing._

 _"Subject F-3. You will be doing purple magic drills in the training room. Subject P-2 will be your target."_

 _Frisk went very, very still. It wasn't Papyrus being the target that was the issue, it was hardly the first time she'd had to practice damaging attacks that required a Soul to latch onto on her younger brother. Papyrus wouldn't be in any danger. After all, the Doctor didn't want him damaged._

 _It was the fact that she had no idea how she'd done that purple magic yesterday. When she'd done the blue types, she'd just_ known _how to repeat it, without needing any other information. But the purple stuff wasn't like that- she didn't know how to make it do what she wanted it to. Yesterday, when Sans was chasing her around with that pillow, it had just sort of_ happened _. It had freaked her out quite a bit, actually, and then she couldn't figure out how to make it go away._

 _Swallowing, she spoke up. "S-Sir, I d-don't even kn-know how I_ d-did _that."_

 _The hand flew at her face and she didn't bother to duck, just accepted the blow that came flying at her, striking her on the cheek painfully. It was easier if she just took the punishment for speaking out of turn and moved on._

 _"Follow." The Doctor barked, and with a small, inaudible sigh, Frisk took Papyrus's hand and followed the Doctor to the training room. Then, in the center of the white-walled room, Frisk began her attempts at recreating the feeling she'd had the day before._

 _No dice. She didn't have a_ clue _how to re-trigger the magic._

 _The hybrid spread her wings, glaring at a spot on the wall just above Papyrus. She pulled his soul into the area between them and thought about the color purple, the strange magical thread that had appeared. She imagined her eyes and feathers glowing with the pretty light, her skin boiling with the too-large amount of magic bubbling inside her._

Nothing _._

 _"Subject F-3!" The Doctor barked, and Frisk flinched. "Summon your magic._ **Now** _."_

 _She grit her teeth and_ pushed _._

 _Nothing._

 _Try again._

 _This time Papyrus's soul lit up- Dark blue. She cussed._

 _"Subject F-3." The Doctor's tone was absolute fury, and Frisk whimpered softly. "_ Do you think I am joking around, little girl _?"_

 _"N-no, Sir! I j-just- I c-can't figure i-it out! It's n-not-"_

 _"You certainly '_ figured it out _' when you were_ fucking around _with Subject S-1 yesterday!" The Doctor spat. "Perhaps you need some_ **motivation** _?"_

 _Frisks's eyes grew to the size of saucers. "N-no, please, S-sir! I j-just need a f-few more min-"_

 _"_ **Silence** _!" Frisk whimpered and shrunk back. "Stay put." The Doctor left the observation window and returned, dragging a confused-looking Sans by the wrist._

 _Frisk licked her lips, as they were suddenly feeling extremely dry. She redoubled her efforts to start the threads of magic, but she just didn't know what she was supposed to be_ doing _! It didn't make any sense!_

 _Sans gave a small cry, and she whipped her head around. The Doctor had that damn sadistically pleased grin he always wore when punishing them. Sans's small wrist was still firmly trapped in one of the Doctor's hands, but the other skeletal hand held a razor sharp scalpel, which was, very slowly and painstakingly, cutting layer after layer off a long line on Sans's radial bone. Her brother started struggling against the hold on him, only to get smacked upside the skull. Frisk nearly shrieked, panicking as she always did when her single-Hit-Point brother was punished. Thankfully, the Doctor knew how much was too much. Usually._

 _"_ Summon your magic **,** _Subject F-3. Or I will_ **kill** _him. It will only take one little too-deep scratch, you know this."_

 _Frisk squeaked, her feathers poofing out in her fear, and turned her attention back to Papyrus, determined to get it right._

 _Magic swirled at her fingertips, formless and colorless. She threw out her right hand-_

 _Sans gave a much louder yelp as the Doctor continued to cut, getting deeper with every pass-_

 _Frisk pushed. Her head and her hand started to hurt, but she kept forcing her magic into the shape she wanted, making repeated slashing motions as she'd done the day before-_

 _Her fingertips felt like they were on fire, it_ hurt _so much... But she pushed through the pain. Her vision went white, but she Persevered-_

 _Sans began to beg the Doctor for Mercy as dark red marrow started to leak from the cut, fighting against the vicegrip on his boney wrist-_

 _The white walls lit up with reflected violet light and Papyrus's soul began to glow a soft purple._

 _Frisk suddenly_ knew _, like she'd_ known _with Patience and Integrity, how to work this new power coursing through her veins._

 **Perseverance** _._

 _The Doctor threw Sans to the floor, roughly, ignoring the bright blue tears tracking down his face, and snapped, "Now_ attack _."_

 _The hybrid raised her right hand and made a slashing motion. Immediately, several dozen razor-sharp, dark purple feathers shot down the six threads of magic crisscrossing through the room. Only one actually hit Papyrus, as she avoided sending them at him._

 _"Turn it off and do it again."_

 _The purple light faded momentarily, then lit back up as she sent more threads of magic in a different pattern. More feathers flew at her little brother._

 _"Again."_

 _Repeat. Threads, feathers._

 _"Again."_

 _Repeat. Threads, feathers._

 _"Again!"_

 _Repeat. Threads, feathers._

 _This went on for six more cycles, until Frisk was too drained to continue and simply sank to her knees._

 _Only then did the Doctor deign to glance down and check on Sans, who was still crying and clutching at his 'bleeding' arm. The Doctor snatched him up by the other wrist and dragged him to the table. Frisk ran up to the window so she could see, as the Doctor impassively wrapped Sans's radius in a long, clean bandage that was quickly stained red with marrow._

 _"Return to your cell." He ordered, and Sans scampered off._

 _"Subject F-3. You disappointed me today." The Doctor growled, turning to face the observation window. "When I tell you to do something, I have no desire to hear excuses or 'I can't's. I expect_ compliance _. Understood?"_

 _Frisk hung her head, wings drooping. "Y-yes, s-sir."_

 _"Take Subject 2-P and return to your cell. You will not be eating tonight." He opened the training room's door._

 _The child snatched her baby brother and practically ran to their cell, ducking into the door, which locked behind her automatically, and curling into a miserable ball in the corner._

 _She felt like_ scum _._

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 _ **BONUS STUFF: Ten-year-Timeskip, featuring Narrator Chara!:**_

 **So. You've seen the Counting Stars kids as adorable kidlets, right? Well, for chapter five's Bonus Stuff, I... Ghost Bro? Who came up with this stupid nickname?... Right, I, Chara, have been Authorized to give you a sneak peek at the FUTURE! *Dramatic Music Cue* This is a typical Tuesday morning for our favorite boneheads in about a decade. And Featherbutt. Can't forget Featherbutt. Ready? You'd better be. Complaints go in the dropbox over there. The deadline for complaints was yesterday.**

 **The Underground's artificial daylight streamed in through the large window, hitting the sleeping teenager within the house smack in the face.**

 **Frisk threw a pillow at the window without so much as opening her eyes. This, of course, did nothing to deter the magical psudeo-sunlight from shining merrily into her eyelids. With a groan of defeat, she sat up, stretching.**

 **Her bedroom door slammed open barely a second later. "GOOD MORNING, SISTER! I HAVE MADE BREAKFAST SPAGHETTI! WOULD YOU LIKE SOME?" Papyrus, as annoying as ever, burst into the room.**

 **Featherbutt shot a sleepy grin at her little brother. Papyrus had grown like a weed over the years, eventually outstripping even Goat Mom and Hot Dad. Today, he lacked his usual armor, which he called his 'Battle Body', and was wearing orange pants, his old red scarf, and Frisk's absolute favorite tee, one that was part of a set of three.**

 **Featherbutt thought he was adorable, as per usual.**

 **"Sure thing, Paps." Featherbutt yawned. "Just gimmie like twenty seconds to chug down a soda and get some clothes on, yeah?"**

 **Papyrus rolled his pupils around in his eye sockets. "FRISK, YOU WILL ROT YOUR TEETH OUT WITH ALL THAT SODA YOU DRINK!"**

 **The teenager laughed, climbing out of the mountain of blankets and clothes arranged in a vague nest-like shape on her bed. She was completely unconcerned about her attire - or rather lack thereof, seeing as she was only wearing underwear at the moment. She'd shared a bedroom with her brothers for a decade, in fact she often still woke up to find they'd all three ended up in the same bed more nights than they woke up alone, even now that they all had their own rooms. And before that, there had been no privacy in the lab. She simply didn't care, though her lack of modesty had caused a few... Incidents, growing up. They were hilarious. Like the time she spilled mustard on her shirt while she and Sans were in Grillby's and just shucked it off right there in front of the customers. I was laughing so hard, if I had a body of my own I'd've cracked a damn rib.**

 **'I'm sure I'll be fine, Paps. You're such a mother hen sometimes, bro.' She cooed over the bond. She started rooting around in the dirty clothes spread over the floor. 'Have you seen my bra?'**

 **Papyrus put his chin in his hand. "I BELIEVE I LAST SAW IT IN THE KITCHEN."**

 **/Yeah, he saw it in the kitchen./ I chimed in. Usually I was content to observe, but Frisk tended to get irritated when she couldn't find things, and I gotta deal with her emotions, my emotions, and Bonehead 1 and Bonehead 2's emotions, so it was better to nip it in the bud.**

 **Frisk threw her hands in the air. "Sans was probably using it as a slingshot _again_."**

 **/Well he _is_ an asshole./ And I wasn't one to pass up a chance to call Bonehead 1 an asshole. **

**"LANGUAGE!"**

 **/Papyrus. I am literally inside Frisk's tiny little brain. There's no need to shout! I can hear you just _fine_!/ I complained. **

**Ignoring me, Featherbutt sighed and simply threw on a tee from the mound on her bed, her part of the three-shirt set Papyrus was wearing. She grabbed one of the skirts off the floor and slipped it on, snagging a pair of worn-out jeans and tossing it over her shoulder.**

 **"YOU KNOW, FRISK, YOU REALLY SHOULD CLEAN YOUR ROOM."**

 **"Uh-huh, Paps, I'll clean my room the same day Sans picks up his sock."**

 **Papyrus made an inarticulate sound of rage, as he always did when The Sock was brought up. Frisk snickered under her breath, sliding her glove over her Handplate and skipping past him onto the landing. She hopped over the railing and landed on the couch beside Toby with a thump, causing the little white dog to cartwheel into the air in a display that really didn't follow the laws of physics. He landed on top of the TV, barking madly. This also didn't follow the laws of physics, but if I spent too much time thinking about the Annoying Dog, my consciousness started to hurt, and without hands or a head I couldn't rub my temples to stave off the metaphorical headache.**

 **Frisk just entered the kitchen, located her missing article of clothing, and put it on under her shirt. She made up a plate of spaghetti, poking at it curiously with a fork.**

 **It _growled_ at her.**

 **She shrieked and threw the plate at the wall. It gave a surprisingly musical crash as it shattered, spaghetti sauce dripping down the wall.**

 **"FRISK?! WHAT WAS THAT?!" Papyrus yelled from upstairs.**

 **'Paps, your cookimg growled at me!'**

 **'so...' Sans's mental voice chimed in from where he was probably still curled in bed, lazy boneheaded asshole he was, 'Paps's breakfast spaghetti is an _impasta_ , then?'**

 **"SAAAAAANS!" Papyrus yelled, shaking the whole house.**

 **'SAAAAAAAAANS!' Frisk yelled over their link, making all three of them wince and me cringe to the back of her mind.**

 **'heh. you guys are all _laughtose_ intolerant, huh? my puns are too _cheesy_ for you.'**

 **/ _SANS YOU MOTHERFUCKER I AM GOING TO RIP YOUR RIBS OFF YOUR SPINE AND SHOVE THEM UP YOUR PELVIS_!/ I screamed, actively attempting to travel across the bond to Sans's mind purely so I could strangle his mental avatar. **

**Yup. This here is a typical Tuesday.**

 **And to be honest? I don't think I'd want it any other way. (Though less puns would be appreciated.)**

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Remember to submit your questions, Ladies and Gentlemen! And various agender people.

Rules:

1\. Keep in mind that whatever events that are caused by Ask the Cast will be non-canon. I.e. Asking Goat Mom to punch Evil Dad in the face will likely result in a humerus scene where Toriel breaks into Gaster's lab, runs up to him, clocks him in the nose, and runs out, but that will not have happened in-story.

2\. Questions that may bring spoilers into play may or may not be answered, depending on the severity of the spoiler in question.

3\. Keep it PG, there are youngin's heeeeere.

4\. Make sure you specify who the question is for.

Characters you can ask as of now:

Evil Dad (Dr. Gaster)

Ghost Mom (Roslyn's Ghost)

Big Bro (Sans)

Featherbutt (Frisk)

Ghost Bro/He Who Is Trapped In Frisk's Head (Chara)

Cinnabun (Papyrus)

Goat Mom (Toriel)

Hot Dad/He Who Is Still Not In The Story Yet Despite Being Planned To Be In Chapter 2 (Grillby)


	6. How To Save A Life

Wow, I got a much better response to my request for questions last chapter than chapter 4.

Don't forget, asks are still open!

Stuff is still owned by the people who own it.

~! #$%^&*()_+

Doctor Wingdings Gaster grasped an old rag, wiping oil off of his hands, taking care to get inside the holes in his palms. He'd spent the last couple days trying to repair some of his equipment. Part of him wanted to simply snatch up a flashlight and run through Hotland and Waterfall searching for his escaped projects, but that was a bad idea. Not only was it incredibly inefficient, but any old monster walking by could see him, and as he's a fairly well-known figure, questions would asked. Questions he could ill-afford to answer. So he had to rely on technology, both for the speed at which he could find them and the stealth.

Considering all of his equipment had somehow spontaneously failed the night they had escaped, that was a problem. He knew they had to have had some level of help, and he'd put together the pieces enough that he'd realized his camera issues over the last couple of months – Since mid-October – were probably intentional. Whoever was helping the trio seemed to be extremely skilled with technology, enough so that he hadn't been able to tell the difference between a shut-down and a broken camera. Not to mention the simultaneous destruction of everything even vaguely electric in his lab.

Standing and stepping away from the machine, he started to fire it up. If it worked, he could use it to locate the tracking chips in the experiments' handplates. He pulled the lever, hoping he'd not missed any wiring.

The machine started to boot, the monitor lighting up. He grinned, but before he could congratulate himself, things went wrong. It made a loud grinding sound, sparking and starting to let smoke out of the heating vents.

Gaster backed away, swearing, and it exploded.

Loudly.

Thank the stars he had this section of the lab soundproofed.

That machine would take weeks to recreate, however, and then he'd still have to get one of the normal computers working again to get a backup of the codes to the tracking chips.

Fuck. Suddenly tromping through the underbrush with a flashlight was looking much more appealing.

He shook his head, trying to clear it. He had to find them, he absolutely _had_ to.

And to do that, he needed to get that machine working.

 _Better get started_ , Gaster thought, taking a swig of coffee.

~! #$%^&*()_+

" **I lost them**!" An oddly-dual-sounding voice echoed through one of the hidden rooms of Waterfall. " **As if things weren't bad enough**!"

The voice's owner, a small golden flower with a face, used one of his leaves to chuck a fist-sized rock into a deep puddle. " **This** _ **sucks**_ _ **ass**_!" He shouted.

" **First I get my brother and I** _ **killed**_ **because of my asinine plan to break the motherfucking barrier, then** **I can't even have a fucking peaceful death because the psychoskel decided to** _ **experiment**_ **on the flowers Mom spread my dust over, and turned me into a numb, unfeeling freak, because that's a thing normal, well-adjusted people do, they just inject random shit into people's fucking** _ **corpses**_! **Just to see what will happen! Insane bitch-ass scientists with delusions of grandeur...** "

He threw another, much larger rock, relishing the noise it made as it splashed into the puddle. " **Then I finally get my fucking emotions back because that crazy little girl decided to** _ **share**_ **her** _ **soul**_ **with a flower that tried to fucking** _ **kill**_ **her! And now I feel like the world's shittiest person because even after she tore out half of her own damned soul and gave it to me like some twisted birthday present, I still dragged the little brat to the psychoskel! And I don't have anyone to rant at besides the fucking rain and the rocks and my own fucking reflection**!"

He let out a wordless yell of frustration. Even though it had been almost a year, he still remembered the day the girl had fallen into the Underground.

How could he not?

 _He was so_ bored _. Everything was bland and uninteresting, even when he changed time around and watched the dozens of different outcomes that the slightest changes could cause, even when he stole and killed and tortured in a desperate attempt to feel something, anything, besides the incredible numbness that permeated his being._

 _That fucking scientist had_ ruined _him. He could still remember being loved, being loving, but try as he might, he couldn't recreate the feeling. Even thinking about his best friend, his snarky, fearless brother who trusted him enough to_ kill _himself to make his foolish plan work._

 _He knew,_ knew _that the memories of losing Chara should_ hurt _, should feel like a lance through his petals, shjould make him want to curl into a corner and bawl like the Crybaby Chara had always pegged him as._

 _But he felt nothing, nothing but an undefinable sense of deep-seated_ wrongness _._

 _It wasn't fair._

 _He settled down into a patch of underground grass in the very back of the Ruins. Maybe a nap was in order._

 _Suddenly, he heard a soft sniffling sound, a child's thick crying. His petals perked. Looks like some entertainment had arrived!_

 _The flower put on a smile and examined the little human that was walking up. Maybe four or five, the kid was, unexpectedly, nearly a dead ringer for Chara at the same age. Her hair was maybe a bit straighter, her eyes the wrong color, her skin a bit paler, but she was the same build, had the same facial structure, the same dark brown hair..._

 _The same red soul._

 _She could've easily passed for Chara when he was younger. A little makeup, a pair of contacts, and even he wouldn't have been able to tell them apart._

 _Not that it mattered._

 _She also looked pretty beat up, there were a bunch of cuts on her hands and arms, bruises peppering her body, and a long scratch on her face. Presumably, these came from her fall through the Hole Into the Ruins._

" _ **Howdy!** " He said to her, false cheer and sweetness lacing his voice. " **I'm Flowey! Flowey the Flower!** "_

 _She looked rather bemused._

" _ **I'm guessing this is your first time in the Underground?** " He waited until she nodded before he continued. " **Well, then, I guess it's up to little old me to explain how things work around here!** " Flowey pulled her soul into a Fight, grinning._

" _ **This here is your Soul. The very culmination of your being! It contains all your precious little feelings, all your emotions and hopes and dreams. Everything you are in this tiny red heart.** "_

 _She looked absolutely_ fascinated _. It was kind of cute._

" _ **See, right now it's not very strong. You're only at LOVE one! And the higher your LOVE, the stronger you are!** "_

" _That makes sense, I guess." She said quietly, speaking for the first time. Her voice was oddly deep for such a young girl. She sounded more like a young adult than a little girl. "About as much sense as a talking flower." She added, a slight drawl entering her voice._

 _Even her freaking_ voice _reminded him of Chara._

" _ **You want some LOVE, don't you?** "_

 _She shrugged._

 _He felt his 'face' morph into a large, slightly disfigured grin. " **Here in the underground, we share LOVE using these nice**_ **Friendliness Pellets!** _ **"** He set up a ring of bullets, making them surround the pair." **Move around, get as many as you can!** "_

 _The little human walked over to one, her soul shining brightly, and touched one of the bullets._

 _Immediately, she jerked her hand back with a yelp of pain as her HP lost a couple points. "Ouchies!" She turned to look at him with big, pathetic eyes. "You didn't say it would hurt, Flowey!"_

 _He twitched, his expression growing more deranged. " **Wow, you really are an**_ **idiot** _ **.** " _

_She frowned at him._

" _ **In this world, little one, it's KILL OR BE KILLE**_ _ **D.** " He smirked. " **D I E."**_

 _She stood, terrified, as the ring of bullets began shrinking, more appearing in the air and starting to slowly move towards her. Was she actually shaking? How pathetic!_

" _Y-you're w-wrong!" The girl whined. "People can be nice, people can love each other!"_

 _He growled and flung the bullets at her, watching in something that wasn't quite a real feeling of satisfaction, but was as close as he could get as she cried out in pain, covering her face with her arms as the bullets added to her injuries and fresh blood spilled from her cuts._

" _W-why are you so m-mean?"_

 _Why wasn't she dead!? Her HP should be zero by now, she'd been hit more times than she had Hit Points for stars' sake! And why would she ask such a stupid question?_

 _It didn't_ matter _! He fired more bullets, but though her body suffered from the blows, her HP remained resolutely at one. Her eyes shone, and the expression on her face, so similar to his brother's was one he'd seen many times before._

 _So, the little girl was Determined to know?_

 _Fine. He'd answer._

" _ **Because I got dealt a shit hand in life, kid. I don't have a Soul anymore, I can't feel,**_ **I. Do. Not. CARE!** _"_

" _... You don't have a soul? But you just told me that you need one to feel!"_

 _He shrieked out a laugh. " **Now you get it, you little bitch!** "_

" _Th-that's_ awful _!"_

 _Huh?_

 _He watched the little human reach for her soul." **Kid? What are you doing?** " _

_She grit her teeth. If she'd looked determined before, now the little idiot looked twice so._

 _He stared as she started_ tearing bits of her soul off _. " **WHAT THE HELL, KID!?** "_

 _The human was crying in pain, making miserable little noises, but she didn't stop. After a moment, the mangled remains of the part still attached to her body faded, and she held out the part she'd removed, as if presenting a precious treasure. She had a sweet little smile on her face._

 _Before Flowey had a chance to react beyond genuine shock, she suddenly collapsed, pitching forward like a marionette with cut strings._

 _The torn section of her soul brushed one of his petals, and his body absorbed it against his will._

 _Suddenly, an amazing rush of swirling colors and thoughts and glorious, amazing_ feelings _shot through him, and he gasped._

 _At the forefront of the emotional bomb, though, were guilt, regret, fear, and disbelief._

 _This little human moron had been so fucking unselfish that she literally gave him part of the culmination of her very being just because he said he didn't have one, and he tried to kill her! Wasn't he just an absolute piece of shit? And now she was lying there dying..._

 _What could he do!? He couldn't just leave her there! Her Soul wouldn't last long, and it would take a fucking miracle to keep her alive..._

 _A miracle, or the intervention of somebody who had a history of bringing life to to things that shouldn't be alive._

 _It wasn't the best plan, but he didn't have time to waste coming up with another idea._

And so, Flowey had brought the girl to Gaster's lab. He'd used some well-placed vines to disrupt the camera feed long enough for him to get her into the lab, and then he hid and prayed Gaster would be able to fix the girl.

Unfortunately, once she was out of critical danger, the skeleton had started searching for the way she'd ended up in the lab, and Flowey had had to flee, lest he be discovered, and end up back on the dissection table. He'd already escaped this hellhole once, after all. Twice might have been a bit much to ask for.

He'd spent a while trying to figure out how to get the girl out of the lab before the Doctor did anything too horrible to her, but then a major setback happened – he completely lost his ability to Reset. He had no idea what had happened. Chara had passed him the ability just before their deaths, and it shouldn't have vanished. It should've been impossible to disrupt. But suddenly it was just _gone_.

So he'd had to make his plan absolutely perfect, because there would be no do-overs for him.

He'd led the little tech-genius with the big heart on a trail of bread crumbs that would eventually lead her to Gaster's Scary Batcave of Science. He had hoped that would be enough. After a few months, he'd started trying to come up with another solution, because it had seemed like there was no progress, but then he saw her, the human girl, and two little skeleton children fleeing Hotland like the devil was on their tails and he felt more relieved than ever before.

He hadn't wanted to show himself, reasoning that she would probably be afraid of him – he _had_ tried to kill her, after all – so he followed them at a distance. He watched as she got incredibly sick and than he'd made the decision to go nick some medicine for them to find. But when he came back, they had literally vanished.

He'd failed her. Just like he'd failed Chara.

" **Stupid, I'm so fucking** _ **stupid**_ **...** "

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AN: This chapter's a little different, in that the kids are nowhere to be seen. Instead, we spend a bit of time with Evil Dad and Petalface, and learn just how Frisk ended up in the lab! How many of you were expecting Flowey?

Speaking of Petalface, Flowey is now available for Asks! Don't forget to submit your questions!

Rules:

1\. Keep in mind that whatever events that are caused by Ask the Cast will be non-canon. I.e. Asking Goat Mom to punch Evil Dad in the face will likely result in a humerus scene where Toriel breaks into Gaster's lab, runs up to him, clocks him in the nose, and runs out, but that will not have happened in-story.

2\. Questions that may bring spoilers into play may or may not be answered, depending on the severity of the spoiler in question.

3\. Keep it PG, there are youngin's heeeeere.

4\. Make sure you specify who the question is for.

Characters you can ask as of now:

Evil Dad (Dr. Gaster)

Ghost Mom (Roslyn's Ghost)

Big Bro (Sans)

Featherbutt (Frisk)

Ghost Bro/He Who Is Trapped In Frisk's Head (Chara)

Cinnabun (Papyrus)

Goat Mom (Toriel)

Hot Dad/He Who Is Still Not In The Story Yet Despite Being Planned To Be In Chapter 2 (Grillby)

Petalface (Flowey)


	7. Maybe

I really should go back and clean up the last chapter. There were a lot more errors than usual... Oh well, I'll do it laaaaater.

In other news, I also wrote my first thing for Underswap. It's called Doing The Impossible, and it's a oneshot.

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Frisk sat on the edge of the bathtub, wings half extended and tilted around to the front. Her fingers danced over them in practiced motions as she preened, realigning the damp feathers and making certain Sans had gotten them clean when he'd washed them for her. She whistled softly as she worked, the tune of the song that played when Sans was in a Fight flowing easily from her pursed lips. He could hear her mentally counting, the rhythm of the numbers matching the song. It was a soothing, familiar set of sounds and actions that put Sans at ease after their small disagreement during their bath.

He had _no_ idea how long they'd been in the bathtub. The water had cooled to the point of discomfort, and was nearly black with filth by the time they'd climbed out and dried off, but they were cleaner than they'd been in ages, the boys' bones sparkling white and Frisk's feathers gleaming in the light.

Sans was digging through the clothes Toriel had said would fit Papyrus, trying to find something the toddler would like. It wasn't easy. Sans was steering clear of anything too restrictive when it came to movement, and anything green.

Papyrus suddenly made excited noises, and snatched at a bit of orange. Sans pulled it out of the pile. He was surprised to discover it seemed to be a soft, warm, one-piece-for-your-entire-body thing. It even looked like it would allow Pap to shift forms and keep it on.

"THIS! WANT SANS!"

He chuckled. It seemed alright... "sure thing, paps. let's see if big bro can figure out how to get you into this, huh?"

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Frisk gave her wings a final shake to get any remaining water droplets off and folded them, sighing softly in pleasure as they pressed into her back and spine. She hadn't felt this good in _ages_.

The hybrid hopped down from the side of the bathtub, changing from whistling to singing, just a bit louder than she'd been whistling.

" _Daylight, starlight, darkness falls. Hold me close, through it all..._ "

The words came unbidden, the beat of the slow song pulsing in time with her soul. The lyrics didn't matter. She made them up as she went along, for once enjoying her voice as the lilting notes echoed off the shining walls and Sans stopped examining the little orange outfit he was trying to figure out how to stuff their little bro into to shoot her a genuine smile. Her voice, now more trilling and singsong than in her damaged memories, was suited more for song than the spoken word. It still didn't feel right, but when she sang it at least felt like the voice was hers, and not some stranger puppeting her throat.

" _Feel the magic everywhere, and if you're scared, I'll be there..._ "

She padded over to the sink and began digging through the clothes Toriel left her.

" _Day will come, bright and true, and I will still be beside you._ "

She selected a tee-shirt, a pretty light blue with two thin purple stripes, and a pair of matching shorts. She slipped the shorts on, smiling when they fit perfectly, then frowned at the shirt.

"something wrong, sis?"

"How am I supposed to let my wings out?"

"huh. didn't think of that..."

"... Maybe we should ask Miss Toriel for help... I mean, you've spent like the last five minutes trying to figure out how to get Papyrus into that orange thing, and now this..."

She could feel Sans's fear. It was raw and feral, and she stepped over to hug him. He leaned into the embrace, Papyrus still in his arms and thus trapped between the two. He started to squirm, but was mostly ignored.

'I'm still not too sure about this, either, Sans... But I want to try. I want to believe that there are good people in the world, that there's hope for everyone ... I want to believe that anyone can be a good person, if they just try.'

"... even the doctor?"

"Even the Doctor." Frisk said firmly, aloud.

"you're an idiot, sis."

"I know. But I'm a _determined_ idiot. Now can we ask Moss Toriel for help or not?"

"... i suppose..."

Frisk nodded and padded out into the hallway in nothing but the underwear and shorts she'd picked out, and holding the shirt. In the hall, she gasped as a sweet, amazing, _incredible_ scent washed over her, the warm air providing a perfect balance. It smelled so good. Frisk's stomach rumbled loudly and she forgot about everything else for just a moment, and when she regained her wits it was to find that she'd followed her nose into another clean, shiny room with a tiled floor. Toriel was bent over, humming as she removed something from a big metal box that radiated warmth.

The smell was _intoxicating_. Frisk shivered, wings half-extending. She'd learned to block out her hunger in the lab, and that had allowed her to keep going without thinking about how empty her stomach was, but this smell was making it impossible to think straight. Her stomach growled again. It was so loud Sans could probably hear it in the bathroom.

Toriel set the thing on the counter and turned to look at her, taking in her state of undress and the shirt in her hands. "Hello, Frisk. Did you need help with your shirt?"

"Um..." As much as she told Sans she believed in Toriel, standing face-to-face with the giant fluffy lady was still nerve-wracking. Toriel had to be at least twice her size, maybe even three times. And fluffy or not, there was something intimidating about her. "W-well... I-I was wondering ab-bout my w-wings, Miss T-Toriel? I-if I wear the sh-shirt..." She shrugged helplessly, said appendages twitching, folding in and extending in time with her words.

Toriel's eyes lit up in understanding. "I see! Well, we shall have to fix that. Go ahead and put the shirt on, so we can be sure it fits, okay?"

Frisk nodded slowly and pulled the shirt on. The monster woman turned and reached for a high cabinet, removing a large pair of scissors.

Frisk squeaked and backed away, eyes locked on the blades. Her breath sped up and she whined softly. Suddenly, there were straps around her limbs, her waist, her neck. It was hard to breathe, _she couldn't breathe_! The Doctor stood over her, shining scissors in one boney hand, a scalpel in the other. _Pain. Fear._ The sight of her soul, floating above her chest. Blood and dust, clotting and mixing as her body tried to decide what it was made of. Her pleas for Mercy and screams of pain falling on careless ears, until he got tired of hearing them and gagged her.

Something soft and warm on her shoulder. A soothing pair of warm arms around her, not so tight she felt trapped, but enough that she felt secure.

A soft voice, murmuring promises of safety and warmth.

Slowly, Frisk came back to awareness.

Toriel had set the scissors down, had come and knelt beside Frisk and placed a hand on her shoulder, then pulled the little hybrid into her big, fluffy lap.

"Shhh..." She soothed. "I am simply going to cut some slits in the back of your shirt. You won't even have to have it on. I promise, my child, _I_ _will not hurt you. You are safe here_."

Frisk took a deep breath. Toriel was _not_ the doctor. Frisk was _not_ at the lab. She believed Toriel was a good person. She _had_ to believe.

She was _safe_.

Right?

She could feel Sans and Papyrus nearby. No doubt her elder brother had felt her panic attack and rushed over, eye blazing and ready to fight. Now he stood awkwardly in the doorway to the kitchen, holding Papyrus and watching Toriel comfort her with untrusting eye sockets.

Frisk couldn't find it in herself to care. She was hungry, and so, so tired. She just wanted to fill her belly and curl up with her brothers and _sleep_.

The goat monster glanced up at Sans and opened her arms a little wider, silently offering the males a place in the hug. The skeleton stared for a moment before slowly moving to join Frisk in her arms.

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" **Okay, okay. It shouldn't be that hard to find her**." Flowey muttered to himself. " **I just have to search the whole Underground! It's not that big, it shouldn't be hard...** "

Though, for a little flower with a time crunch, it was definitely a daunting task.

" **I-I'll start at the capital and head towards the Ruins. I won't miss a single room!** " Flowey's petals trembled. " **I'll find her, and those skeletons, and I, I'll even apologize! And I can keep her safe. I** _ **will**_ **!** " He stared at his reflection in the water. " **You- you'll see! I won't fail her, not this time.** "

There was a dim pulse of magic, and he allowed himself to get a good look at his half-a-soul. The sight of it was soothing to his frayed nerves.

It really was impressive, how it could stay together when it was five or six little bits, none of which actually touched. It was like a partly-done puzzle, with some of the edges and a chunk or two on the inside put together, arranged so that the pieces were in their proper places. The result was several free-floating chunks of bright red magic, somehow staying close despite nothing holding them in place.

It wouldn't have sustained a normal person's life, human or monster. Anyone with a soul this damaged was basically already dead, they just didn't know it yet.

But Flowey didn't _need_ a soul to survive. He'd lived for years without one. What he needed a soul for was to _feel_. And the part of her soul that the human girl had given to him was more than enough to make him able to experience joy, and love, and sorrow, and guilt, and anger, along with many, many other emotions. _All_ of them!

She had given him everything.

He would protect her with everything he had, everything he was.

He just had to find her first.

He dove into the ground, tunneling through the dirt at high speed. The little flower popped back out in the soft dirt at the castle gardens, glancing back and forth before sighing.

 _Buttercups_.

Along with Chara's favorite golden flowers, the King's garden was full of buttercups.

Buttercups... The cornerstone of the plan that got he and Chara both killed.

 _"So, if you take the right amount of these, Doctor Gaster says it'll put you into a kind of 'waking death'."_

 _"Like in Romeo and Juliet?"_

 _"Yeah, and if you're in that state, I should be able to absorb your soul. But your body would still be alive! And then, if I took it with, I can put your soul back in your body once we're on the other side! And then we can find some humans that are already dead or dying and take their souls back to the barrier and break it! It's perfect. Nobody is hurt, monsters are free, and humans will see that we can work together!"_

 _A tinkling laugh. "It sounds like the perfect plan, Asriel."_

Flowey shook his bloom sadly. " **It was anything but.** "

Freaking _buttercups_.

In hindsight, it had been a stupid thing to do. They should have resouled Chara's body the moment they stepped over the threshold of the barrier. But he had loved the feelings fusing Chara's soul and his own had brought. They'd been closer than ever before in that moment, when he could feel all the love his brother had for him, and vice versa.

The humans, in their defense, had reacted entirely reasonably. Flowey had no doubt that, if a human appeared in a monster village with a pile of dust in their arms and a serene look on their face, the monsters would make the same assumptions, and would react the same way. All the humans in Chara's old village could see was a child, dead, cradled in the arms of a huge monster with a big dopey grin on his face. They had had no way of knowing that the body wasn't technically dead, that his grin wasn't insanity but rather love. They just saw what it seemed to be and reacted accordingly.

He couldn't blame them.

He couldn't blame Chara.

He could only blame himself... and the buttercups.

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Asks are still open!

Rules:

1\. Keep in mind that whatever events that are caused by Ask the Cast will be non-canon. I.e. Asking Goat Mom to punch Evil Dad in the face will likely result in a humerus scene where Toriel breaks into Gaster's lab, runs up to him, clocks him in the nose, and runs out, but that will not have happened in-story.

2\. Questions that may bring spoilers into play may or may not be answered, depending on the severity of the spoiler in question.

3\. Keep it PG, there are youngin's heeeeere.

4\. Make sure you specify who the question is for.

Characters you can ask as of now:

Evil Dad (Dr. Gaster)

Ghost Mom (Roslyn's Ghost)

Big Bro (Sans)

Featherbutt (Frisk)

Ghost Bro/He Who Is Trapped In Frisk's Head (Chara)

Cinnabun (Papyrus)

Goat Mom (Toriel)

Hot Dad/He Who Is Still Not In The Story Yet Despite Being Planned To Be In Chapter 2 (Grillby)

Petalface (Flowey)

And, if you're interested, don't forget to check out Doing the Impossible.


	8. Tomorrow

Sorry for the wait for this one. I've been pretty busy.

The lyrics in this chapter were, I believe, originally written by adrisaurus on YouTube. If you haven't heard her version of Home (The song that plays in Toriel's House, I'm pretty sure), go check it out. It's perfection.

I listened to it on endless loop while writing the first part of this chapter. XD

~! #$%^&*()_+

The meal had been delicious, and best of all, filling. None of the trio had been able to finish it, though Papyrus seemed content with getting the strange, noodly food everywhere but his mouth.

Toriel had called it 'spaghetti'. Frisk had adored the white sprinkly bits she'd put on top, Sans the red, chunky sauce, and Papyrus the huge mess he could make. His older siblings had been worried Toriel would be mad, but she'd just laughed and gotten out a damp rag to clean off the squirmy toddler.

Once they'd eaten, Toriel had helped put Papyrus into the outfit- a 'onesie', she'd called it- And, true to her word, cut slits in the back of Frisk's new shirt. She helped Sans pick out a simple blue tee and a pair of black shorts, and made sure they had different clothes picked out to sleep in (making certain to cut the back of Frisk's, of course). Neither really understood the need for 'night clothes', but Toriel seemed enthusiastic about it, so they let her dress them up in the soft, comfortable fabrics and bundle them off down the hall. Now they were being led to yet another room.

"I am sorry I only have one spare bedroom for you." Toriel began. "But I will go and pick up another bed in the next few days, so you won't have to share for long."

Sans and Frisk exchanged baffled glances behind her back.

'Did you understand any of that?'

'about one word in three.'

/You two are _comically_ clueless./ Chara sighed.

'CLUELESS?' Papyrus broke into their mental dialogue, his tone one of confusion.

/Yes, Papyrus. Your brother and sister are dumb./

'And you're a bitch.' Frisk pointed out.

/I try./

'if you're not going to help, go the fuck away.' Sans snapped.

Chara scoffed. /Okay, let me translate that into _idiot speak_. Mom's sorry you guys have to share a living space, and I know you don't care about that because you've done it for your whole lives. A 'bed' is what normal, not-under-the-heel-of-a-madman people sleep on. I have no idea how you will react to one./

Both of the young children were still confused, but Toriel had opened the white door, revealing a clean, organized room with cream painted walls and wooden floors with a large rug. It was at least three times the size of their old cell, but full of furniture. There was a set of shelves against the back wall, bare but free of dust, and a small cabinet beside it. On the other side was a small round table with a little lamp sitting on it, though it was a lot rounder and more... decorative?... than the lamps in the lab. Next to the cabinet was a large, squareish piece of furniture they didn't recognize, but Chara confirmed that yes, that was a bed. At the end of the bed was a polished wooden box of some kind, painted with the same symbol on the lid as Toriel's dress. Beside the bed were two large vaguely-animal-shaped, soft looking things.

"This will be your room."

Sans clenched his fists. This was not okay, this was not okay. Nobody just gave others things like this. Everything came with a price. It always had. Even his siblings had had their own conditions attached when the Doctor introduced them, chiefly that their safety depended on his cooperation. "wh-what do you even want from us?"

"Hmm?" Toriel turned and looked down at him.

Sans could feel his eye glowing, and was unsurprised at the loss of vision in the other one. It had been like that for years, since Before Papyrus. Since he had been the Doctor's only project. His right eye was broken. "what do you want from us!? all of this stuff you're giving us- the food, the clothes, the room, the healing- what's the catch!?" He was shaking, wasn't he?

Frisk set a warm, stabilizing hand on his clavicle. He sucked in a breath. "i have to know, i can't let them get hurt..."

Toriel knelt down to look him in the eye. He'd noticed she did that a lot, especially when one of them was afraid or nervous. "My child. There is _no_ catch, no price you have to pay for my kindness. I want nothing from you, save for you to be happy, for you to grow to be the best that you can be. I want you to feel safe and warm, I want you to feel loved. I want to give you the love I gave my own children, before their untimely deaths so many years ago." Was Toriel... crying? Great big drops of salty water were dripping down her snout. "I want to see you laugh and smile and play like children do, I want you to grow and learn and _love_... I am but a lonely old woman who lost everything years ago, and who spends her days with nothing but a desire to protect those who cannot- who should not have to- protect themselves." She, very slowly, giving him plenty of time to pull away if he desired, wrapped her big, warm arms around his middle.

It was only then that Sans realized he was crying.

~! #$%^&*()_+

Toriel scooped the little skeleton into her arms, stood, pulled back the covers, and laid him in the bed. He laid there and sobbed, curling onto his side, bones rattling as he trembled.

The poor darling. Frisk climbed up with the baby in her arms and settled against his back with an air of someone who knew exactly where they belonged. She rested her chin on his shoulderblade, holding the toddler to her chest, and draped a large, feathery wing over the three of them.

Toriel couldn't help but smile sadly at the display. "Oh, my children." She whispered, pulling the covers over them. "I wish nothing more than for you to be happy." She absently reached out a large, fuzzy paw and began rubbing Sans's skull, hoping to help calm him.

She had an idea. Chara had used to have moments like this, at first, when her darling child had first began to get used to unconditional kindness. Toriel took a deep breath. She hadn't done this in years, but she easily remembered the words, and so she began to sing, softly, soothingly, the way she used to for Chara and Asriel.

" _Come, my child. Stay with me._

 _I'll protect you and your dreams..._

" _Rest, my child, 'neath the tree._

 _Like its branches, reach for me._

" _So, let me keep you safe and warm_

 _Here in my arms..."_

~! #$%^&*()_+

Flowey sighed. He'd been through the entire Capital, and the CORE, and there was no sign of the girl.

Hotland was next. He really, _really_ hoped they weren't in Hotland. That was, after all, where Gaster's lab was.

… Crap. He'd have to check the lab, wouldn't he? He'd need to make sure they hadn't been recaptured...

Fuck. He did _not_ want to go there.

But he had to find the human girl. He _had_ to!

He would start his search in the morning.

~! #$%^&*()_+

Gaster smirked at the computer as it- finally- booted properly. This may have been the easy part, as he still had to recreate the machine to actually _track_ the escapees, but he was still satisfied with today's progress. He quickly searched out the proper codes and scribbled out a hard copy so that, if the computer failed again, he wouldn't lose them.

He yawned. Perhaps he should break out the cot rather than getting to work. There was no point in working himself to exhaustion, after all. Even the experiments were less productive when they were tired.

He could always continue tomorrow.

~! #$%^&*()_+

In a lovely little house in Hotland, a little yellow dinosaur stared out her bedroom window at the faintly glowing landscape, still lit up by the lava even in the artificial night created by the CORE.

She couldn't stop thinking about her friends. Were they safe? Had they been caught again?

It was too bad she couldn't bring them here, like she'd originally planned. Her plans had to be scrapped when they were almost caught by that guard. She didn't know how high up the corruption that had allowed Sans, Papyrus, and Frisk to be harmed as they were wnet, and she hadn't wanted to risk them being sent back if, say, the King was involved.

Oh, stars, she _hoped_ the King wasn't involved. That would be _horrifying_.

"Alphys! Are you in bed yet?" Her mother yelled through the bedroom door.

"Yeah, Mama!" She yelled back, practically diving under the covers.

"Goodnight, dear."

"Night."

The light in the hall went out, and Alphys sighed. Tomorrow was another day...

~! #$%^&*()_+

Toriel sighed softly, making sure the trio were comfortable, and sound asleep, before leaving their room and heading for the living room. She'd left her cell phone there, and she had a few calls to make.

The first person she called was the last one she wanted to talk to, and this was a confrontation she'd rather have in person. Then again, that's what the phone was for.

"Hello? Tori-"

" _Don't call me that._ " She spat into the phone.

She could hear Asgore swallow nervously. "My apologies, Toriel."

"Listen to me, _Asgore_. In two days, I want you to meet me at the little bar in Snowdin- Grillby's, it's called. I have some _questions_ for you. And no, this isn't about the human _children_ you _murdered_. Although, it's just as serious. If you don't show up, I will come to the castle and _drag your furry behind here myself, you hear me_!?"

"Y-yes, dea- er, Toriel. I will clear my schedule... Is there any particular time you want me to be there?"

"Noon." she growled, hanging up without a care for how rude she was being. Talking to her ex-husband always put her on edge. Toriel took a steadying breath and dialed the next number.

"Hello? Tori?"

This time, she was much more pleasant upon hearing the nickname. "Good evening, Grillby." She greeted her acquaintance. The pair of them had fought together in the war, and had kept up sporadic contact over the decades. "I was hoping I could ask you for a favor."

"Anything for you, Your Highness."

She decided not to correct him, it was fruitless anyway. Grillby would always call her that, no matter how many times she insisted that she was the _former_ Queen. "Can you close the bar at noon in two days? I have a rather... unpleasant meeting, and I need a neutral environment for it. But if things go wrong, there will probably be fireballs thrown, so I don't want there to be other monsters that can get hurt in the crossfire..."

"Of course, you only need to ask. I'll let the regulars know, tomorrow."

"You are the best."

"Thank you." She could practically hear him stoking his own flames.

"So, who are you meeting?"

"Don't get too _hot-headed_ , dear, but... It's my ex." She hoped the joke would defuse a bit of the reaction she knew was coming.

She could hear Grillby's fire crackling. Like her, he was unimpressed (to put it mildly) with Asgore's actions towards the children that had fallen into the Underground. While Grillby was not a fan of adult humans, the children were innocent in the war veteran-turned-barkeep's eyes, and harming the innocent went against everything the elemental stood for. "Do you mind if I throw a few fireballs of my own?"

"Only if things go sour." Toriel sighed.

"I suppose I'll have to settle for that..."

"I think you'll be fine, dear." The goat woman smiled. "I will see you at eleven in two days, then. I will explain why I need to talk to Asgore before he arrives."

"Sounds like a date, Your Highness."

"I will see you then. Goodbye."

"Have a good night." Grillby hung up.

Toriel place her head in her paws. She was already not looking forward to the day after tomorrow.

But she could handle it if it meant answers.

She yawned. Better get some sleep. Tomorrow would be a long day.

~! #$%^&*()_+

 **HOT DAD IS FINALLY IN THE STORY!1!11111!1!1**

Even if it's only in a phone call. XD

I'm afraid asks for chapter 10 are now _**CLOSED**_. I've got more than enough, now.

 ** _HOWEVER_**. Asks for chapter 20 are OPEN!

In addition, Alphys is now available for asks, but Roslyn is no longer available. :( Ghost Mom had to go back to the Void.

Rules:

1\. Keep in mind that whatever events that are caused by Ask the Cast will be non-canon. I.e. Asking Goat Mom to punch Evil Dad in the face will likely result in a humerus scene where Toriel breaks into Gaster's lab, runs up to him, clocks him in the nose, and runs out, but that will not have happened in-story.

2\. Questions that may bring spoilers into play may or may not be answered, depending on the severity of the spoiler in question.

3\. Keep it PG, there are youngin's heeeeere.

4\. Make sure you specify who the question is for.

Characters you can ask as of now:

Evil Dad (Dr. Gaster)

Big Bro (Sans)

Featherbutt (Frisk)

Ghost Bro/He Who Is Trapped In Frisk's Head (Chara)

Cinnabun (Papyrus)

Goat Mom (Toriel)

Hot Dad/He Who Has Finally Appeared In The Story Dammit (Grillby)

Petalface (Flowey)

Little Genius (Alphys!)


	9. Fireflies

The plot of this story is moving at the speed of molasses... XD

Do you guys realize that, since the beginning of chapter two, less than forty-eight hours have passed?

I suck. XD I think we're in for the long haul.

Fun fact, I was listening to the extended version of Meglovainia for pretty much half of this chapter. It's like a seventeen-minute song, and then I forgot I had itunes set to loop, and it started over, and I literally didn't realize I'd been listening to it for like an hour until I finished and looked at the clock.

~! #$%^&*()_+

Sans bolted awake with a keening cry, the sound of ripping fabric filling the room as it gave beneath his claws whilst he thrashed. He grabbed his tail in his jaws, whining like a scalded pup. His pupils flicked back and forth, taking in the unfamiliar room.

Why wasn't he in their cell?

"Mmm..." Frisk sat up, stretching lightly, and took in the sight of him, shifted and covered with tattered cloth. "Nightmare?" She yawned, her voice quiet so as to not wake Papyrus. She rolled her shoulders and looked over at him with half-lidded eyes. The feathers in her hair and on her wrists glowed slightly, a soft, flickering light, that and his pupils the only light in the room.

He nodded, whimpering, as the memories from the day before came back. Frisk nearly falling, Chara, Toriel... The bath, the meal, the clothes, the lullaby... 'i... i'm s-sorry, sis... didn't mean to wake you...' He sent over the bond. The nightmare had been standard, memories of the lab mixed with indistinct fears and phantom echoes of pain. It wasn't something Frisk needed to worry about. They all had them, even Papyrus.

She hummed, picking up Papyrus, who had also shifted in his sleep, though the toddler's clothes had survived the ordeal.

'i t-tore the b-blanket...'

"You did." Frisk agreed with a nod, stroking along the length of Sans's skull, down his spine, then his tail and back to the beginning. "Do you want to talk about it?"

'not really... what if toriel's a-angry?'

Frisk sat in the dark of the room, looking at the glowing pupils of her sibling from the corner of her eyes. She pulled one knee to her chest, leaning against the headboard with a fairly thoughtful expression. "What _if_ Toriel's angry?"

'huh? i don't... that's what i asked _you_...'

/Wait, are you actually being _deep_ right now, Featherbutt?/

'wha?'

"Well, if Toriel gets angry, what will happen?"

'i... i don't know... th-that's why i asked you!'

Frisk nodded. "And I'm asking you. What do _you_ think she'll do, Sans?"

'… um... m-maybe sh-she'll h-hit me? She'll hit y-you? sh-she'll hit paps?'

"Okay, so we're assuming she'll use one of the lower-end punishments?"

Sans nodded, tail flicking back and forth anxiously.

"Why?"

'huh?'

"I guess my brain kicked into overdrive while I was asleep, because I woke up and realized something."

'what was it?'

"That, if Toriel was going to hurt us, she'd have done it by now."

Sans blinked, rump hitting the torn blanket and utter shock in his eyes.

"Think about it. She has us here. I have no idea how to work that complicated lock on the door we came here through. I have no idea how to get out of this building.

"She has no reason to keep up the kind act now that we're here. And yet, she has."

'b-but what if-'

"Well, if she's luring us into a false sense of security, she's doing a bang-up job."

Sans froze. Now that he thought about it, he'd been willing to let her touch him, let her pick him up and coddle him. He'd let her hold him and rock him like Frisk sometimes did after a particularly bad time on the operating table. He hadn't felt any kind of fear, despite being terrified of even Alphys touching him. Before, only Frisk and Papyrus could touch him and provide the comforting warmth and feeling of safety that Toriel seemed to simply radiate. He'd taken whatever she'd offered him, be it the bath, the food, the clothes... Whenever the Doctor offered something- extra rations, the little sweets they were sometimes allowed after a good run in training, a blanket for a few nights, anything- Sans had always been immediately wary, wanting to know the full cost of the 'gift' beforehand. When it came to Toriel, however, he'd subconsciously skipped that step, all the way until it became too much for him to ignore.

Sans... felt safe.

"Do you really still believe she'll hurt us, Sans?" Frisk hadn't looked him in the eyes since the conversation had begun.

'… frisk?'

"Hmm?"

'do... do you really believe that? that everyone can be a good person, if they try?'

"I do, Sans." She finally met his eyes. "I don't know why I believe it... And logically, it doesn't make sense."

Distorted images flashed across the bond, almost too fast for Sans to recognize. It didn't help that they were warped and indistinct. But he got the impression, nevertheless. 'you think it has something to do with when you live on the surface, then?'

"Well, I can't imagine where else I would've come up with the idea. Chara certainly didn't plant it in there."

/Yeah, if I were going to plant ideas in her tiny little brain, they'd make more sense than _that_./

'Yes, thank you, peanut gallery.' Frisk rolled her eyes, barely visible by the light of her feathers.

Sans let out an amused huff of air. 'hey, frisk?'

"You're going to pun, aren't you?"

'maybe.'

She slid down into a lying position with a groan. "Alright, bro, lay it on me."

'i don't know _feather_ i would be sane without you, sis.'

Frisk snorted. "Stars, Sans! That was so bad it was actually amusing!"

'... i love you.' He rested his skull on her shoulder, cuddling against her side before using his snout to grasp Papyrus by the scruff of his neck and pull him up beside them.

Frisk's mind filled with a sense of mischief, and she grinned at him, her teeth glinting in the light from her feathers. "I keratin about you, too, Sans."

Oh. Oh holy crap.

'you punned!" He grinned, unaware of his pupils literally going star-shaped. Frisk saw it though, and her smile grew wider.

"Night, Sans. I love you."

'you actually punned, i can't believe it!' His tail wagged eagerly.

Frisk just giggled and rolled back over.

"it's amazing!"

"Go to sleep, Sans."

Sans stuck the end of his long, whiplike tail in his mouth and closed his eyes, content. 'frisk? I think you might be right.'

Only soft snores answered him, his sister already asleep.

~! #$%^&*()_+

" _Come on, Frisk, it's time for bed! Ma made muffins-"_

 _A delighted squeal. A warm hug._

 _A deep, full belly laugh. A child swept into the air, onto broad shoulders._

" _ **f? are you okay?"**_

 _ **A miserable noise born of pain and loneliness.**_

" _ **i-i'm sorry... i love you?" A desperate attempt to soothe a loved one.**_

" _I love you, kiddo!"_

" _Hee hee... Jamie, you're the best brother..."_

" _Anything for you, kiddo."_

" _ **S, I love you."**_

" _ **You're the best, brother."**_

" _ **I don't remember anything from the Surface."**_

" _Now, remember, Frisk, you must never climb the mountain on your own."_

" _Nobody who has has ever returned."_

" _Yes, Ma. I understand, Daddy."_

" _ **focus, f. feel the magic in your soul, let it overflow..."**_

" _ **don't rush it. patience is key, okay?"**_

" _ **Sure thing, bro. I understand, Sans."**_

" _I want to inspire you, little sister."_

" _ **I want to inspire you, big brother."**_

" _Someday, you'll show the world just how determined you can be."_

" _ **I'll show you just how determined I am."**_

" _I love you."_

" _ **I love you."**_

" _ **I** am **filled** with **determination."**_

Flowey's eyes shot open. Was... was that a dream? He hadn't dreamt since he'd been turned into a flower...

He tried to remember what it was about, but it was mostly vague impressions and detached voices with no additional context.

One thing he knew for sure, though...

That had not felt like it belonged to _him_.

~! #$%^&*()_+

The next morning, Toriel carefully eased the children's bedroom door open, hoping she wouldn't wake them up.

She stepped inside, setting the small basket she was carrying on the shelf. Today would not be fun, for her or for the kids, but it had to be done. She needed to look over Sans's eye and any other injuries they may be hiding from her, and she needed proof to wave in her ex-husband's face tomorrow.

She looked over at the bed and nearly shrieked in surprise, managing to stifle it at the last second by shoving one of her paws in her mouth. Where she'd put three children in that bed the night before, now there was one child, and two... Puppies?... with heads that were almost draconic in shape. They were pretty clearly still Sans and Papyrus, the smaller one still wearing the little pjs she'd put him in, and the larger one curled protectively around him covered in tattered scraps of the ones she'd given Sans. Their blanket was also torn, but that hardly registered.

Though she'd managed to keep quiet, Papyrus still lifted his head, looking around sleepily. He caught sight of her, and his pupils grew very large, before he squirmed out of Sans's limbs (producing an annoyed grumble, but the elder skeleton didn't wake) and climbed over his ribs and then Frisk's hip, his footsteps much surer in this four-legged form than his clumsy steps on two legs. He looked up at her eagerly, his tail wagging.

Toriel, very slowly, reached out and took him into her arms. Papyrus cooed and settled into her warm fur, and Toriel was struck by how _small_ he was. He was the size of a half-grown _housecat_. The child's head in this form was much larger than his body, probably because he was so young. His tail was easily as long as his arm in bipedal form, each individual bone moving independently. His little snout had a frighteningly large amount of sharp teeth poking out. Likewise, all four of his feet had razor-sharp claws.

Shapeshifting monsters had all but died out in the Great War. The last one Toriel could even remember being alive had died of old age decades ago. And yet, here were two skeletons (a rare breed of monster to begin with) who seemed to be easily capable of it.

Another piece of an ever-worrying puzzle.

"Papyrus, my child..." Toriel whispered, trying not to disturb the others. "Could you change back?"

The doglike creature nodded, squirming free of her hold and hopping back onto the bed. He stretched in a very catlike way, the sound of bones popping in and out of sockets loudly filling the room and awakening both Frisk and Sans, as they sat bolt upright, one of Sans's eyes flaring light blue, while a little bit of dark blue bled into the red of Frisk's eyes and the tips of her feathers. Before either of them could fully form an attack, they remembered where they were and Frisk shot Toriel a sheepish look. Papyrus, in his more childlike form, babbled a greeting.

"FLUFFY!" He waved eagerly at Toriel. The woman giggled.

"Good morning, my children." Toriel smiled, none of her shaken nerves tarnishing her voice.

"... Good morning, Miss Toriel." Frisk smiled hesitantly.

The same sound as before, an unpleasant sound, though the process of changing forms didn't _seem_ to be painful. "good... good morning, miss toriel." Sans said softly. "i'm s-sorry about th-the bl-lanket. i-i... I had a night t-terror, a-and..."

"Do not worry about it, my child. Blankets can be repaired, or replaced. There is no need to be concerned."

"... really?" He looked up at her with such a hopeful spark in his eye sockets.

"Yes." She said firmly. "Really." This was as good a segway as anything to broach the topic she needed to discuss. "But do you know what I cannot replace, Sans?"

Terror entered his expression. "wh-what?"

"I cannot replace you, my child, or Frisk, or Papyrus." Sans sucked in a breath, despite his complete lack of lungs. "And so, today, though I know it will probably be uncomfortable, I would like it if you would be willing to allow me to document any injuries or scars you may have. And I wish to then heal those injuries."

Frisk squeaked.

"It is only so I have proof you were harmed by the person whom harmed you. Then, if he came looking for you, he would not be able to use legal means to try to take you away." And she could find out who hurt these children and _dropkick_ them across the Underground. "All you three would have to do is show me where it hurts, allow me to take a simple photograph, and then I will do my best to heal your injuries. And if you do not wish me to do this, or want me to stop at any time, I will follow your wishes."

She watched as, for a moment, Frisk and Sans were silent, occasionally glancing at one another. She knew that she would have to ask them about that eventually, but after a couple minutes of nonverbal communication between the pair, Toriel was gifted with the best answer she could've possibly hoped for.

"... alright, miss toriel... we'll trust you..."

~! #$%^&*()_+

 _ **AUTHOR'S NOTE GUSHING ABOUT THE READERS, YOU'RE WELCOME TO SKIP THIS XD**_

So, recently, I've been getting a lot more reviews than usual... And _I love it._ I EAT YOUR FEEDBACK UP LIKE COLD APPLESAUCE. I PRINT THEM AND THEN I ROLL AROUND IN ALL OF THEM. If I get a review (or a comment, on Ao3) at work, I literally stop whatever I'm doing to read it on my phone, and spend the next twenty minutes in a grinning daze. I reply to every damn comment I get on Ao3.

I LOVE YOU PEOPLE. I _especially_ love comments that ask questions about the background mechanics and character quirks, and the funny, witty ones, and the offhand remarks about the character's situations. I get ideas from _everything,_ and a seemingly random remark could change the whole direction of the story. I'm not even kidding. On Ao3, I got a comment that, to paraphrase, said the Frisk was going to have a difficult time in Snowdin because she didn't have warm clothes. It was literally the first comment I got.

And even though I had Chapter 2 _completely done_ , I sat down and rewrote the whole thing. If that completely inane comment had not inspired me so, WE WOULD NOT HAVE GOAT MOM. And that is a crying shame. And the witty questions, the insightful observations, these are what set my brain off on a spiral of BUT WHAT IF THIS HAPPENED INSTEAD!?

And THAT, my darlings, is how I'm getting chapters out so quickly. We're in a symbiotic relationship here, guys. I write, you read, you comment, I get ideas, I write, you read, you comment, I get ideas...

So I want you all to take a moment to pat yourselves on the back.

Thank you so much for reading the inane ramblings of a madwoman who spends way to much time thinking about fictional characters.

Just to prove I read every damn thing you guys send me, here are some of my favorite lines from the comments on Ao3 and FFN.

"And, Gaster? I'm tryin' reallll hard to see some good in you, but you're makin' it so gosh didly darn difficult... So, just do everyone a favor if you aren't going to turn a new leaf and go jump in the Core, alright? Alright, nice chatting with you, buddy. *thumbs up*  
All aboard the Gaster Hate Train! Woot woot!"

"Good lord, Gaster is so cartoonishly, ridiculously evil that he might as well have a black top hat and a mustache to twirl as he sings "Where is the reeeeent? I must have the reeeeent!" "

"YOU ORIGINAL LITTLE SHIT "

"Please put Cinnabun on top of the fridge."

"Ohhhhhh, wow. Did NOT see that coming."

"waah, flowey why did u do that? why not take frisk to toriel instead of a crazy scientist?"

"Can't we just have a nice story about 3 kids that were tortured and are now being raised by a nice goat mom while said goat mom WILL FUCKING KILL THE DEMON THAT TORTURED THE CHILDREN!  
Please?  
*puppydog eyes*"

"Gaster does not deserve redemption! He deserves to get dunked by an angry goat mom! "

So, yeah. I'm sorry I've rambled on so much. But considering I'm rambling about how much I love you all, I think I can be forgiven, right?

 ***tomatoes fly at my face from every direction***

Goddammit.


	10. A Little Bit Stronger

Me: *wakes up, yawns, and checks my phone*

* _COMMENTSPLOSION IN THE FACE_ *

Me: *blinks, a cartoonish layer of soot on me and my hair blown back* Welp. That happened. *grins* I love you guys. Better get started on this chapter...

WARNING, BLATANT CHILD ABUSE TALKED ABOUT IN THE CHAPTER

Stuff still belongs to the creators of the stuff.

You can find the bonus materiel - 'Ask The Cast 1', after the chapter if you're on FFN, or as part three of the Defying Gravity series on Ao3, 'Questions Before Bed'.

1234567890

Toriel offered to do Sans first, knowing he'd be more comfortable with the idea of her handling the younger pair if he knew it was safe.

The child had accepted, and, without hesitation, shucked off the remnants of his clothing to stand bare-boned in the middle of the room.

Toriel had him put the clothes he'd picked the day before on, explaining that they should eat beforehand, as this might take a while. Then she took them back to the kitchen and got out the cinnamon-butterscotch pie she'd made the night before, allowing the trio to have it for breakfast. This resulted in three very happy children.

She showed an astonished Frisk their toybox, assuring the girl that, yes, the toys were for her and her brothers, smiling genially at the child who thanked her repeatedly. After making sure the girl and the toddler would be alright alone together, she took Sans into the bathroom, where he again got undressed.

He looked her in the eyes in proper lighting for the first time, and Toriel gasped, dropping to her knees and grasping his chin gently so she could get a good look at the spiderweb of cracks around his right eye.

"Sans? What happened here?"

He mumbled something, jerking his chin out of her hand so he could stare at the floor.

"Sans..." Toriel said softly. "You do not have to-"

"the doctor broke my eye when i was a babybones." Sans whispered a little louder. "it doesn't work right anymore. i can't glow it, and i can't see out of it anymore when i use magic... he cracked my face when he tried to fix it... it hurts..."

"Shh, Sans... Thank you for telling me..." Toriel wrapped him in her arms, rocking him back and forth. "I'll try and make it better, okay? Just let me get a picture, first."

"o-okay... miss toriel?"

"Yes, my child?"

"the doctor was bad, right?"

"Yes." Toriel said without hesitation, though inside she was raging. It seemed her half-formed theories and concerns had been valid, and that most certainly was a bad thing. "He hurt you, and that makes him bad. Anyone who hurts others is bad."

Sans's breath hitched. "b-but... we hurt others... so f-frisk and i, we're bad t-too, right?"

 _Shit_. "Did this 'doctor' make you do it, child? Did you want to?"

Sans immediately and vehemently shook his head, wincing in pain. "n-no. n-never! b-but if we didn't do the tests he'd punish us..."

"Then it is not your fault, child." Toriel whispered, stroking his spine in an attempt to soothe him.

Sans sniffed and leaned into her, and she smiled softly. "There we are, my child." She reached over and picked up the camera. After taking a photo of the bed, she showed it to him. "The camera wil just make a permanent image of what it is pointed at, alright?"

Sans nodded slowly, wiping the blue tears from below his eye sockets. Toriel snapped a photo of his eye socket, shook it out, and showed it to him.

"And may I have one while you are glowing your eyes or using magic?"

Immediately Sans's left eye blazed with blue light, and his right pupil vanished. Toriel snapped another picture.

Together they went over every scar and injury the boy had.

And there were a lot...

Toriel was finding it more and more difficult to keep her cool as picture after picture began fluttering to the floor. Healed over cracked ribs, straight, surgical cuts of discolored bone where something had cut it and it had healed over. Half-healed cuts and scrapes, including an especially worrying, very deep cut on his radius. Little chips that she recognized as injection scars. The metal plate screwed directly into the bone of his hand.

A horrifying barcode _engraved_ into his clavicle.

The full examination took almost two hours. Sans was emotionally exhausted, curled into a ball in her lap, with no remaining tears to cry. Toriel was pretty worn out, as well, having pumped as much magic as she could into the child's wounds, then his scars. She'd managed to seal up all of the partially-healed injuries, including the worrying cracks in his skull, but most of the scars stubbornly remained in place. She'd have to get ahold of a doctor - a real doctor, not whatever beast would harm a child in this manner - to take care of them.

"You did such a good job, Sans." Toriel cooed reassuringly. "I am very proud of you, my child."

"you are... proud? i did good?"

"Very good, Sans." Toriel stroked his skull gently as he hiccuped, breath hitching as he attempted to sob with no remaining tears. "You are so brave, my child."

Toriel could only describe the way he looked up at her as broken. His pupils were no longer perfectly round, rather they trembled in his sockets and resembled the shape of a drop of water during an earthquake. The permanent smile on his face was smaller than usual, and his entire body was shaking like a leaf. "you... thank you... i... i..." He started to sob again, clinging to her needily.

She soothed him, rocking back and forth again and petting his skull, murmuring soft nonsense. Slowly, Sans fell asleep, simply exhausted from the stress of the ordeal.

Toriel carried him back to the children's room, lying him down and tucking him into bed.

"Miss Toriel? Is Sans alright?"

"He'll be fine, small one." The goat woman reassured the hybrid. "He is simply tired. Your brother let out quite a lot of emotion he seemed to have pent up."

Frisk nodded, satisfied with that. "Am I next, then?"

"If you wish. I must eat first, however. Healing your brother has nearly entirely depleted my magic reserves. Are you or Papyrus hungry?"

Frisk shook her head. Toriel nodded, accepting that, and said, "I will return in just a few minutes. Perhaps you can put Papyrus down for a nap while I eat?"

The child nodded, picking up the tired-looking toddler and walking towards the bed.

1234567890

Flowey popped up at the edge of Hotland, frowning at the wave of uncomfortable heat that washed over him. He had a lot of ground to cover today, and Hotland was definitely the most difficult part of the Underground for him to traverse.

But he couldn't just give up. He was filled with Determination...

He would find the human and keep her safe. He would not fail his brother's memory.

! #$%^&*()_+

("The bar will be closed tomorrow, Grillby?") Dogaressa asked, pointing at the sign he had posted in the window.

"I'm afraid so, my dear," the fire elemental nodded. "I have an old friend coming to town tomorrow. She's reserved the entire bar for a meeting with her ex. She's rather afraid it will get violent."

"Do you need us to-"

"No, Dogamy." Grillby shook his head. "My friend and I are perfectly capable of handling things if they get... messy." He adjusted his glasses, not looking at either concerned guard dog.

("If you're certain, Grillby.")

"I am." He nodded.

"Alright." Dogamy said. "We'll be sure to-"

("Let the others know.")

The lovers headed back to their usual table.

~! #$%^&*()_+

Alphys poked her head into the living room. Her mother, Titania, was sitting, sewing as usual.

"Mama?"

"Yes, gumdrop?"

"I wanna go v-visit Undyne. I-is that okay?"

"Of course, dear. Be careful in Waterfall and be back by night, alright?"

"Of course, Mama."

Alphys grabbed a spare tote bag, wishing she had her favorite pink backpack. Not that she minded handing it over to Sans. They needed it more than she did. She packed up a bit of food and a few other things, and slung it over her shoulder.

It was time to confess to Undyne about what she'd done, and hopefully enlist her help in searching through Waterfall and then maybe even Snowdin if there was time.

Before Sans, Papyrus, and Frisk, she'd only had one friend, and that was Undyne. And, since most people were terrified of the... enthusiastic... fish girl, she was Undyne's only friend.

She could only hope the other would believe her. Nobody else had, after all.

~! #$%^&*()_+

Toriel's examinations of Frisk took much less time. They hybrid had quite a few scars, but still a lot less than Sans did, and very few unhealed injuries. Notably, like Sans (and Papyrus, Toriel would find), she had a barcode on her collarbone, but thankfully it was tattooed, not engraved. Her wings seemed to be in relatively good health, though Toriel didn't reakky know a lot about taking care of feathers. She resolved to ask Grillby if he could ask Snowdrake Sr. about what kind of soap she would need, and perhaps if there was some sort of brush she could use on them? Toriel also took the opportunity to offer Frisk a haircut, explaining that it would be much less painful than trying to get the giant knots out of the girl's tangled mane. Doing so revealed several long, thin scars on her back that nearly made the woman ill, and an odd, thick, jagged scar on her hip, that extended up onto her belly and down onto her buttocks. When asked how she'd gotten that, Frisk looked down at it with confusion and said that it had been there 'before', and that she didn't really know.

Aside from that little hiccup, it went smoothly. Frisk spent most of the examination humming and staring at wall.

It was only once they were done, and Toriel was leading her from the bathroom, that she decided to broach one of the more worrying subjects on the ever-increasing list of Things To Worry About.

"Frisk?"

"Yes, Miss Toriel?"

"... My child. Sometimes it seems that you and Sans can communicate without needing to speak aloud. Is this the case?"

For a second, Frisk froze up, her eyes glazing over just a little bit. Then, "Yeah. Al-er, we were told that the what the Doctor did to us to make our link was a bad thing, but even though it hurt when it happened, me an' Sans and Paps feel a lot better when we can know the other two are safe..."

Toriel nodded slowly, though in her mind, a shadowy, faceless figure in a lab coat was flying through the Underground, courtesy of being tossed in the air and then roundhouse kicked by her.

While he was on fire.

"I understand, my child. I am glad it brings you comfort."

Frisk smiled brightly at her, eyes nearly literally going starry. "It's the best thing ever, even if sometimes Sans drives me nuts with puns and Paps's baby talk is annoying and Ch-" She stopped abruptly, frowning. "But yeah, I know how much they love me and I can prove I love them and that makes it wonderful."

Toriel smiled, slightly confused by the child's abrupt sentence-ending. "I see."

Frisk nodded, swinging the door open and jumping eagerly into the bed, burrowing into the covers at the foot, worming her way through, and popping out at the top to kiss Sans on the forehead and hug Papyrus.

Toriel barely managed to snap a picture in time. She chuckled at the confused looks she got. "Cameras aren't just for documenting abuse, my children. We can also use it to save _good_ memories." She shook out the picture and showed it to them. Frisk giggled at it.

"Now, may I take Papyrus and look him over?"

Frisk held out the toddler without hesitation, a trusting expression on her face.

"FLUFFY!" The baby squealed, clapping happily. Toriel chuckled, taking him into her arms.

"Is that what you'd like to call me, Papyrus, my child?"

"FLUFFY FLUFFY!"

"I will take that as a yes."

Sans let out a hesitant little laugh. Toriel swept from the room.

1234567890

Frisk slipped her hand into Sans's.

'Chara? Why didn't you want me to mention you to Miss Toriel?'

/Featherbutt. Just drop it, seriously!/

'you yelled at my sister. i'd like to know why!'

/Look you bratty little fucker, sometimes it's best if you let _sleeping dogs lie_. You'll get bitten less, that way./

'is that a challenge, you fucking bitch?'

/ _Ooooh._ The little experiment parrots the creator. How _cute_. Fuck off, little freak./

'You,' Frisk snapped, 'are the one who needs to 'fuck off'. You think you can just show up in my head one day and talk all the shit you want? We've been through enough shit, we really don't need to listen to what's spewing out of your mouth.'

Frisk felt more than heard the scoff. /Fine. You want me gone? You won't hear from me. Let's see how long you last outside of the lab _without_ me to explain every little thing to you brats!/

'you do that.' Sans rolled his pupils around in his eye sockets.

There was no response.

 **Ask the Counting Stars Cast 1 is heeeeeeere! *dum da da dum***

 **titanicdragon asked:**

 **|"So Sans when you get older will you show the Dr a bad time?"|**

 **Sans picks at his handplate, not meeting your eyes. "i mostly just want to put that all behind me... but if he comes anywhere near us ever again he will _regret_ it. i won't... i won't let him hurt us anymore."**

 **They also asked:**

 **|"Goat Mom, what if the Dr comes after them what will you do?"|**

 **Gaster stared at the former Queen in frustration. One of his missing experiments was hiding behind her leg, peeking out fearfully.**

 **"Your Highness, you have no idea how dangerous that thing is-"**

 **" _SILENCE_." Toriel hissed, eyes burning. Fire magic pooled in her hands. **

**Gaster prepared his own magic, not liking his chances. Toriel would barbecue him before he even had a chance to attack. She'd fought in the Great War, for stars' sake, and she was a Boss Monster.**

 **"I will not enjoy this, Doctor Gaster. I once thought of you as one of my friends. But you have either become something awful or you were rotten to the core and hiding it well even then.**

 **"Die."**

 **Magical flames shot at the skeleton with the cracked skull, surrounding him and growing ever closer before they simply began to consume him. Dust fell to the floor and Toriel felt her LV rise and bile in the back of her throat, but she kept up the stream of fire until even the dust was gone.**

 **Frisk had her face buried in Toriel's leg. The monster woman knelt down, gently patting the young girl on the head. "I promised I would protect you, my child. Do you believe me now?"**

 **They also asked:**

 **|"Frisk how much more do you remember about the surface?"|**

 **Frisk's face scrunches up. "Ooh, you picked a _hard_ one. I really don't remember a lot. Mostly it's less 'memories' and more 'feelings', I think." She looks confused. "Sometimes some things make my head feel funny, like I've got deja vu, you know? And sometimes, if I think really hard, I can see snatches of other humans, but it makes my head hurt really bad and I never see their faces, which makes me sad, but I dunno why. I hope that helps and didn't just confuse you." She frowns. **

**ngrey651 said:**

 **|"Good lord, Gaster is so cartoonishly, ridiculously evil that he might as well have a black top hat and a mustache to twirl as he sings "Where is the reeeeent? I must have the reeeeent!""|**

 **Dr. Gaster shakes his head. "No. I may be evil, I may be insane, but I have standards, dammit!"**

 **"But you have to! It's too good to pass up!" I whine, holding out a top hat.**

 **"I said no, Author."**

 **"Pleeeeeease?"**

 **"** _No_ **."**

 **"Yeesh, no need to use the scary voice."**

 **"Go _away_."**

 **"Nope, the next question is also for you."**

 **"Fuck my life." He mutters. "Be a scientist, mom said. It'll be fun, mom said. I wanted to be a chef, dammit."**

 **Library_Drone said:**

 **|"Here's a question for evil gaster. Why a metal plate for desk. Why not a tatto or something? It would have been easier. Less mess less maitenince."|**

 **Dr. Gaster eyes the question. "I have no metal plates on my desk. I can only assume this is a typo, and you either meant 'Them' or 'Frisk'. I am afraid, however, that, at the time you are asking this question, you are misinformed. All three of my projects do have barcodes. The Blasters, S-1 and P-2, have them engraved onto their clavicles, while Subject F-3 has hers tattooed above it."**

 **He steeples his fingers. "When I originally installed the plate on Subject S-1, it was as a punishment. He was beginning to rebel, disobeying and fighting back when I gave him an order. The usual punishments weren't doing anything. I would've threatened to remove P-2 from his care, but I needed him caring for the younger one because I had no desire to watch it myself."**

 **His expression darkens. "Then he tried to escape, bringing P-2 with, of course. I caught him before he even had a chance to get out of the lab, but the damage was done. He then knew it was possible to get loose. I needed a suitable punishment that would both deter him from disobedience and remind him exactly what he was."**

 **Gaster shuffles some papers on his desk, producing several photographs. He shows them to the fourth wall. They are pictures of Sans and a tiny, infantile Papyrus, strapped down to a metal table. There are also some close ups of their hands, before and after the plates were installed. "I chose the handplates because they fulfilled both requirements. S-1 immediately fell back into line, and with P-2 also tagged, he would be less likely to forget who he belonged to. The tag for P-2 also doubled as another punishment for S-1, because he knew without a doubt that it was his fault his 'brother' had been punished so."**

 **Gaster shrugged. "As for F-3, I mostly wanted them to match, and was not expecting all the blood and mess. I'm hardly an expert on human anatomy."**

 **TheyDroveMeMad said:**

 **|"Please put Cinnabun on top of the fridge."|**

 **"WHAAAAAAA!" Papyrus wails. Where is he? Why is he so high up? Where are Brother and Sister?**

 **He is scared! How did he get on top of the Big White Cold Box? How does he get down now? He shifts and paces, thinking maybe it'll be easier to jump down if he has four legs, but when he peers over the edge his knees still shake.**

 **He cries some more, tears blurring his vision, and then there are big fuzzy warm things around his middle, and Fluffy pulls him to her chest and hums softly, holding him. "There, there, Papyrus." Fluffy says in that nice pretty voice. "I've got you, my child, everything will be okay."**

 **And Papyrus believes her. He snuggles into her arms and makes happy noises, tail wagging.**

 **Fluffy laughs.**

 **Superfan said:**

 **|"Hey Mama tori you should give the kids nice cream, I bet they would love that"|**

 **"Miss Toriel? Why are we getting bundled up?" Frisk asks as Toriel helps her into the puffy winter coat.**

 **"I have a surprise for you, my child. You will like it, I promise." She picks up Papyrus, and takes Sans's hand. Sans grabs Frisk's hand in his other, and they set off through the purple door leading out of the Ruins.**

 **The trip through the snow was cold and uneventful, until they reached a strange rabbit man leaning against a cart of some kind.**

 **"Morning Tori. Who are these cuties?"**

 **Toriel laughs. "This is Frisk, Sans, and Papyrus. They'd like a Nice Cream, each, please."**

 **Frisk blinks. Nice Cream? It sounds... Like something it sounds like. Her fucking memory issues are starting to annoy her.**

 **"Here you go, Frisk." The blue bunny man kneels down and offers her a blue blob on a stick. She takes it and eyes it. It smells sweet, so it is probably food. She takes a tentative lick.**

 **Her eyes widen.**

 **She proceeds to shove the whole glob in her mouth, removing the stick. She swallows it down immediately.**

 **A cold rushing feeling, painful and unpleasant, slides up the back of her skull and she whines.**

 **Toriel gasps. "Oh, child, you have to eat the Nice Cream slowly! Now you have brain freeze, don't you?"**

 **Brain freeze sounds exactly like what is happening. Frisk nods miserably.**

 **"Worry not, my child." Toriel smiles, absently helping Papyrus eat his Nice Cream. "It will go away after a moment."**

 **Reiken said:**

 **|"And because I am a horrible person, I ask the following for your Ask series...with all the wonderful, delicious angst that comes with it:**

 **|"What if Sans and Papyrus had made it out of the lab without Frisk?"|**

 **Sans growls. "We'd never have left her behind! If she'd been stuck, we would've stayed!"**

 **Papyrus starts to cry. "WANT SISTER STAY."**

 **Frisk shivers. "I'd be a pile of bloody dust, probably."**

 **Toriel glares. "What kind of question is that supposed to be?!"**

 **Dr. Gaster grins. "Well, I would have to punish her. And if F-3 survived that, I would use her as bait for her 'brothers' by torturing her until she begged them to come back over their bond. My life would be a lot easier if one of them had been left behind."**

 **Chara shudders. /I'd prefer not to die. Next question, please./**

 **Guest said:**

 **|"So Goat Mom. Evil Dad/Gaster is actually the one who totured the three kids. I won't tell you what he did because it's far too gruesome, but yeah."|**

 **Toriel sighs. "Unfortunately, I cannot know this information as of this point in time. Rest assured, though, that when my in-story self figures it out, she will kick butt."**

 **RockinRootbeer asked:**

 **|"Can you please do something where Ghost Mom Roslyn haunts Gaster by pulling pranks on him? Like making creep noises, switching all the sugar for his coffee/tea in his lab with salt, etc? I just think that would be really silly and fun if she gives him a bad time :3"|**

 **Roslyn grinned, an odd-looking expression when on a beak. Not that anyone could see her at the moment.**

 ** _Closer_. _Closer_. **

**Gaster picked up his coffee cup.**

 ** _Closer_. **

**He picked up the salt bowl, thinking it was his sugar bowl.**

 **He put a heaping scoop in and stirred it around.**

 ** _Closer_. **

**He lifted it to his teeth.**

 ** _Now_!**

 **And took a drink.**

 **Coffee went everywhere as the scientist hacked and wheezed, spitting it all over the floor.**

 **Roslyn laughed.**

 **They also said:**

 **|"I'm also curious as to how strong the kids' bond is with each other. Can they hear everything the others are thinking and what they feel? Though I don't really want to ask the characters directly since it this question seems like something Gaster would ask and I don't want to be insensitive... Anyways...  
Thank you and have a nice day!"|**

 **Frisk and Sans exchange a glance.**

 **"our bond?"**

 **"It's... It's, well. Um."**

 **"it depends, i guess."**

 **"Yeah, we don't really know. It's sort of a sliding scale?"**

 **"yeah, when we want to hear something, or they want to send something-"**

 **"- Then it's there. But it's also there constantly, but it's mostly just white noise."**

 **"i guess the best answer is that we hear everything in the others' minds, but our own minds tune it out unless it's important."**

 **"... Yeah, let's go with that." Frisk nods. "Next question."**

 **They also asked:**

 **|"On a different note, I'm really surprised that Frisk mostly learned how to fly so early on, I thought for sure it would take a few years for her wings to mature so they could hold her weight. The same with the use of magic, she seemed to pick up quite a bit in less than a year."|**

 **Frisk looks a bit offended. "Hey, I'll have you know that learning to fly was hardly easy!"**

 **/You still can't take off from the ground./ Chara laughs.**

 **"You shut up!" Frisk blushed. "Look, the Doctor basically pushed me off a virtual reality cliff over and over again until I got it right. It was a painful and humiliating experience, and Sans still laughs about the way I flailed and squawked on the way down."**

 **Sans snickers. "you were screaming like you wanted a cracker."**

 **Frisk blushes. "I got shoved off a cliff!"**

 **"you have wings!"**

 **"Wings I didn't know how to use!"**

 **"it doesn't seem that hard, just flap them!"**

 **Frisk gapes. "Is that all you think I do to fly?!" She yells. "Flying is a very intricate process involving precise physics and proper weight distribution- You've fallen asleep, haven't you? Jerk."**

 **Sans jumps awake. "huh? did you say something, sis?"**

 **Frisk screeches in frustration. Sans snickers.**

 **booklover41 said:**

 **|"Hey flowey!**

 **Why not look for the kid? Maybe help her out?"|**

 **Flowey is popping out of the ground in another part of Hotland. "What do you think I'm doing, you idiot?!"**

 **He shrinks back into the ground and reappears at the junction between Waterfall and Snowdin. "She could be anywhere!"**

 **He repeats the motion, arriving in the MTT hotel. "Anywhere except the Ruins, really. I mean, Mo-Toriel, she keeps them locked tight. There's no way they could get in."**

 **He vanishes into the dirt again.**

 **1234567899**

 **GalifreyanDemiWizard** **says:**

 **|"Hey Ghost Mom, can u and Goat Mom punch Evil Dad in the face? :333"|**

 **The locks clicked open, and Toriel knew that her partner in crime had successfully completed her task.**

 **Roslyn's spectral, feathered hand extended from the middle of the door and beckoned her in.**

 **Toriel pushed the door open and passed the ghost, storming into the office behind yet another door.**

 **The skeleton man seated behind the desk looked up just in time to receive a fur-covered fist to the nosehole.**

 **1234567890**

 **TheShapeshifter100** **asked:**

 **|"To Sans/Big Bro. In a hypothetical situation where you can say or do anything you can like without consequences, what would you say or do to Gaster?"|**

 **Sans picks at his plate. "i... i just want to know why. why did he hurt us? did he hate us? why..." The child breaks down into confused tears, and Frisk hugs him.**

 **"I think we're done." She snaps.**

 **Superfan returns to ask:**

 **|"Is hot dad closer to the boys and tori with frisk? Or do the children all prefer one?"|**

 **"So." I say. "Since the kids haven't even met Hot Dad yet, I decided to go visit the Frisk, Sans, and Papyrus from the flash forward from chapter five's bonus materiel."**

 **I enter Grillby's, walking straight up to the counter and plopping onto the barstool at the very end. Beside the counter, where an old, broken-down jukebox used to sit, is an upright piano. The older version of Frisk is sitting at it, her fingers dancing across the keys, playing the familiar patterns of Bonetousle.**

 **I ask the question.**

 **"You're basically asking me to pick which parent is my favorite, right?"**

 **I nod. "That about sums it up."**

 **She glances over at Grillby, who is watching us. "I refuse to answer this question on the grounds that Hot Dad is right there, and thus answering the question may incriminate me."**

 **1234567890**

 **I find Papyrus at his sentry station, drawing out plans for a new puzzle.**

 **I ask the question.**

 **"I LOVE BOTH OF THEM, SHORT HUMAN AUTHOR!"**

 **I flush. "I am NOT short..."**

 **"YOU ARE SMALLER THAN SANS!"**

 **I scowl and go looking for Sans, muttering about bad times and tall skeletons.**

 **1234567890**

 **Sans is asleep just inside of the Ruins, right next to the Purple Door. The Annoying Dog is curled up beside him, chewing on his hoodie. Toriel seems to have come by and laid a blanket over him and a pillow beneath him, and there is a bottle of ketchup and a covered dish of pie beside him.**

 **I resist squealing at the cuteness of the scene, wake him up, and ask.**

 **"well... i love dad, really, i do. he taught me how to cheat at cards and he gives me free ketchup and he really does love us... but mom was the first person besides frisk and papyrus to make me feel safe. she took us in when we were broken disasters, loose cannons ready to snap at any moment and never asked for anything in return. she held me when i cried. she told us bedtime stories and taught us how to live... if i had to pick the parent i'm closest to, it would be mom. plus, she loves bad jokes, so that makes her awesome." He grins at me, taking a swig of ketchup and shoving the Annoying Dog away from his coat.**

 **1234567890**

 **That's all for Ask The Cast this time. Next time will be chapter 20!**

 **(Note: I AM NOT SHORT. EVERYONE ELSE IS TALL. XD)**


	11. Out of the Woods

So, a few things before we get this chapter in the air. One: I have to work this weekend. We're talking three twelve hour shifts on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. So chapter 12 won't be coming out until after that. Monday at the earliest, but more likely a few days after that. Because of this, I've given you a couple new Characters near the end of this chapter. Hopefully they'll tide you over!

And two: Soul Types and colors are discussed in this chapter. You may notice I've added a couple types to the seven we see in game (Amity (Pink), Confidence (Dark Green), Charisma (Light Purple), Loyalty (Dark Grey), Cunning (Black), Wisdom (Brown) and Joy (Silver). This is because a) Nothing in canon contridicts the idea of more soul colors, and b) The seven types we're shown hardly cover the entire spectrum of traits humanity shows. This also gives me more colors of magic to work with in the story.

One more thing. I told a few people the Flashforward from Chapter five was definitely canon.

Change that to _maybe_ canon. Ideas are coming so fast, I barely have time to process them. And while I have a vague track to get from point a to point b, and I know how this story will END, the middle is up for grabs. Anything goes!

~! #$%^&*()_+

Lunch was a subdued affair. Toriel was still steaming over the injuries the children had, Sans was still tired from his earlier breakdown, and Frisk was lost in her own little world, humming under her breath. Papyrus was oblivious to this, however, and chattered amicably as only a young child could.

Frisk felt like the entire world was on her small shoulders and wasn't certain why. Halfway through picking at her meal, the girl simply stopped eating and started fiddling with the feathers on her left wrist, watching he movements of the skin trapped beneath the plate as her fingers moved.

"Frisk? Is something troubling you, my child?"

"No, Miss Toriel." Frisk lied slowly. "I guess I'm just not used to eating so much, so often..."

Toriel nodded, returning to her food.

'you sure you're okay?'

"I'm fine, Sans." She responded aloud, noting absently the way Toriel's eyes flicked over to stare at her brother when Frisk so casually responded to an unheard question.

He grunted in acknowledgment.

Frisk continued to fiddle with her wrist feathers, straightening them and picking at them until it started to be uncomfortable, then moving on to her other wrist.

"Children."

The older duo looked up at Toriel, who had a rather grave expression.

"Last night, after I put you to bed, I made a few phone calls." She told them gently. "I do not know if you are aware of this, but this 'Doctor' that has hurt you so is not a good person. By harming you, he has broken laws- the rules that we all must live by."

Rules. Frisk understood rules.

 _Do not speak unless required to._

 _Obey._

 _No magic outside of the training room and your cell._

 _No back talk._

And breaking rules was punished.

Wait...

"If laws are rules, and breaking rules is punished- and the Doctor broke the laws..." Frisk's eyes went wide. "Then the Doctor will be punished?"

Toriel clapped. "Very good reasoning, Frisk!"

Frisk felt a rush of pleasure, both at the praise and the thought of the Doctor paying for hurting Sans and Papyrus in some way.

"And yes, you are correct."

Sans sat up straight, staring at her.

"In order for the Royal Guard to catch the Doctor so he can face the consequences of his actions towards you, I need to know who he is. Could you help me?"

"... The Royal Guard, Miss Toriel?"

Toriel sighed. "The way our society works is fairly simple. The King is in charge of the Underground. He sets the rules that we must live by- Do not harm others, do not steal, simple things like that." The pair nodded. "And if somebody breaks those laws, it's the Royal Guard's job to catch them and make sure they face Justice for their crimes."

Frisk tilted her head. "Justice? Isn't that one of the Soul Types?"

Toriel blinked at her in shock. "You know about the Soul Types? You're a little young to know about those..."

"determination, integrity, patience, kindness, perseverance, amity, wisdom, bravery, confidence, justice-"

"Joy, Charisma, Loyalty and Cunning." Frisk finished.

"Very good, my children. But yes, Justice is one of the Soul Types. Yellow, to be exact." She cleared her throat. "'Your sure-fire accuracy put an end to the mayhem of your foes.'" She said, with an air of quoting something.

Frisk nodded slowly, "So... Justice is a Soul Type? Are you going to give the Doctor yellow magic?" The little hybrid felt like that would cause more harm than good.

Toriel laughed, but not cruelly. More disbelieving than anything else. "Of course not, Frisk. Justice is more than just a Soul Type. It is a concept, what the victims of a criminal feel after the criminal is caught and punished. Or what someone like a member of the Royal Guard will feel as they are catching said criminal. It is the guilty being punished for their sins, and the innocent receiving closure because of it."

Frisk and Sans stared at her in slight confusion. Toriel frowned. "I am sorry. It is difficult to explain."

Frisk poked one of the little round green balls rolling around on her plate with the fork, sticking it in her mouth. She wasn't a fan of the mushy texture, but she enjoyed the taste. And it was definitely better than the utilitarian sludge the Doctor had always given them. That had, according to him, had everything they _needed_ , and reduced any variables that would be caused by feeding them the kind of food he'd always eaten, usually sitting in his office across from their cell. It may have had what they needed, but Frisk, at first, could barely choke it down it was completely tasteless, but the _texture_... She almost shuddered just thinking about it.

"We got off track, however." Toriel said slowly. "Can you please tell me the Doctor's name?"

"... we don't actually know it." Sans had a light blue blush spreading across his cheekbones.

Toriel blinked. "Do you know what species he was?"

"Skeleton." Came in unison.

Toriel swore.

Frisk and Sans cowered back slightly.

"That _bastard_." The monster woman spat. "That complete and utter, lying, child-harming _bastard_. How many times!?" She stood up, beginning to pace. "How many times did Asgore and I have him over for dinner while he was _torturing children_ in his free time!? How many lies could he have possibly told!?" She sat back down heavily, burying her snout in her enormous furry hands. "How could I have fallen for them?"

"M-miss Toriel? Y-you kn-know-"

"Yes, Frisk. I know who the Doctor is... I cannot believe this, he was a friend... To think that he could be capable of harming innocent children in a manner such as this..." She wiped her eyes. "I am so sorry, my children. I didn't know, but I should've been able to tell, should've seen it... I should've been able to figure out that all was not well and save you... Please forgive me...?"

Toriel wanted to be forgiven? Why...? Frisk's face scrunched up in confusion. "You didn't know, why would you know? Why would you need to be forgiven, you didn't break any rules..."

Toriel sighed. "I wish I _had_ known..."

"we can't change our pasts, only our futures." Sans said softly.

"BEST FLUFFY!" Papyrus cheered, throwing his plate in the air. It landed on Frisk's head, covering her in peas and mashed potaotes, and Toriel laughed.

"Looks like you three need a bath."

"We get _another_ bath?"

"Of course!" Toriel smiled. "However, while you are in there, I wish for you to think on this; Tomorrow, I will be meeting my ex-husband in regards to the Doctor and making sure he is punished. I need the three of you to decide if you wish to accompany me, or stay here with a trustworthy babysitter."

They stared at her. "y-you mean a stranger...?"

Toriel nodded and the pair shook their heads so fast she worried for Sans's neck vertebrae. "Alright, my children. Know that, whatever happens tomorrow, I will _keep you safe_."

~! #$%^&*()_+

Undyne had been horrified, spears forming in her hands almost against her will. Alphys had to literally hold her back from storming into Hotland and going after the Royal Scientist herself.

"U-und-dyne! We h-have to w-worry about S-Sans, P-Paps, and F-Frisk right now! We g-gotta find them a-and h-help them... N-nobody w-will bel-lieve us witho-out them!" The little tech genius had both arms wrapped around Undyne's waist, digging her heels into the soft ground in front of her friend's house.

"BUT ALPHYS-"

"No, no b-buts! They're a-all al-lone somewhere o-out her-re.." She felt her eyes filling with tears. "Please, 'Dyne..."

Undyne went slack in defeat, sending both monster girls tumbling to the ground. "Alright..."

"Thank you..."

"We should ask Blooky or Metts if they saw them! ONWARD!" The fish hopped to her feet and slung the dino over her shoulder, making tracks for the other houses nearby. "And maybe Gerson, too! He's bound to have seen _something_!"

Alphys couldn't help a little grin at her friend's enthusiasm. For the first time in days, it felt like things would be alright.

~! #$%^&*()_+

Flowey was tired. After checking the lab, which was mercifully free of small human girls, he'd started going through Hotland.

It _sucked._ His petals felt like they were going to catch fire more than once, and he had to keep popping up in Waterfall to cool off and breathe. And he'd thought it was slow going through the CORE!

But he had to keep moving! Determination coursed through him, fueled by the shards of soul he'd been gifted by a girl too kind for her own good.

He'd do it, for her. And he would do it again, and again...

He'd do it, for her, and as payment for his sins.

~! #$%^&*()_+

Bianca sighed, staring over at her boyfriend. He was staring wistfully out the cafeteria window at the mountain visible in the distance.

Mt. Ebott.

"Jamie, you know we can't go up there."

James Seraphee clenched his fists. "They're talking about sealing off all the entrances, building a wall around it! They've already got a whole bunch of cops and people patrolling it to make sure nobody else tries to climb!"

"I know... Then no more hapless kids will vanish on that cursed mound of rock."

"BUT THAT WON'T BRING HER HOME, BIA!" He shouted. Teachers and students alike looked over at him. "What if she tries to come home, a-and there's a wall in the way!? How will she get past it?" His voice broke, and he ran a hand through his short brown hair.

"Why can't you just accept it!?" Bianca demanded. "Francine isn't coming home! She's _gone_ , Jamie..."

She immediately her words as a soft sob escaped her boyfriend's lips, him staring down at the faux-wood of the lunch table.

"Come on, love..." She set a hand over his. "Frisk wouldn't want you to obsess over finding her like this."

"She's my baby sis, Bianca... I c-can't just move on and forget her..." Tears hit the table with almost inaudible _plunk_ noises.

"I know. I know." She soothed, scooting her chair over so she could rub his back soothingly, steadfastly ignoring the muttering of the other students and their scoldings by the lunchroom staff. "We have to persevere... You can't throw your life away because she vanished. You haven't been eating, or sleeping properly... Francine wouldn't want you to waste away in your grief..."

"She can't be gone, she can't..." He wouldn't listen to reason. He was too loyal to his baby sister to accept the reality that she wasn't going to show up if she hadn't already.

"... I'll make you a deal, Jamie?"

He turned tear-filled blue eyes onto her.

"You take care of yourself, get your strength back up. Eat right, sleep welll, get you exercise. Try not to shut yourself out from the world. And in a couple weeks, you and I can climb the mountain and look for Frisk."

A spark of hope entered those lovely, expressive eyes. "Y-you'd do that for me, Bia?"

 _I'd do anything for you_. "Of course I would."

"Okay... I love you."

"Love you too, you big dork."

He gave a weak little chuckle.

~! #$%^&*()_+

Seated upon a raft floating calmly along the river that ran through almost the entire Underground, a figure wearing a dark, hooded cloak slowly pushed their craft through the water. Despite their lack of customers, they still spoke to the empty air around them.

" _The wheels of fate turn evermore. No matter how a timeline can vary, key events will forever remain a constant._

" _Eight humans will fall into Mt. Ebott before the monsters can be freed, before the Angel can rise. Eight humans, seven colors._

" _Determination_.

" _Patience_.

" _Bravery_.

" _Integrity_.

" _Kindness_.

" _Justice_.

" _And soon, Perseverance_.

" _Fate **cannot** be denied_."


	12. Dreams and Disasters

Important stuff: I made a tumblr for this fic. You can find it here:

(h)(t)(t)(p)(:)(/)(/)(countingstarsundertale.)(tumblr.)com

(I FUCKING HATE FFN WHEN IT COMES TO LINKS. *RAAAAAAGE* Remove the parentheses or just type it in yourselves.)

Anyone who wants to submit anything, ask any kind of question regarding why I did something a certain way, what may or may not happen in the future, etc, are welcome to do so. In fact, I BEG IT OF YOU! * **Dramatic fall to knees** * Please don't leave meeeeee! I love you people... * **sweatdrop** *

Seriously, though. I've had some people asking me where they can find my tumblr, well here's one just for this! And if you check it out, you'll learn about all the other stuff I've been doing instead of schoolwork, writing this fic, or doing my actual paying job. Like more crappy ms paint drawings! And tidbits like twelve hundred words of psycho yandere Frisk in Underfell. It's wonderful! * **fairy spin** *

… What do you mean I should just keep typing? Slave drivers...

One more thing: I AM SO SORRY FOR THE FIRST HALF OF THIS CHAPTER IF YOU WANT TO BLAME ANYONE FOR THIS TRAVESTY PLEASE BRING YOUR PITCHFORKS AND TORCHES TO 'RudeAntalope661' ON AO3. THIS IS THEIR FAULT, NOT MINE. I AM SO SORRY. I AM GOING TO HELL.

(Also thank you for your patience. I'll try to have another chapter out in the next couple days, but you'll probably have to wait another week if you don't hear from me before then. :( )

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Chara awakens cold. He cannot move, and when he opens his eyes, he finds that the lights above him are harsh and bright, and his eyes are unusually sensitive to them.

He is lying on something smooth, flat, and hard, but the light's practically blinding him and he closes his eyelids.

Something is being wrapped about his wrist. He panics, attempts to move it away, but his limbs do not obey. Instead, his head turns slightly without his consent, eyes cracking open again to peer at the person fixing their wrist to the table.

And all at once, Chara understands.

This is a nightmare. But not his nightmare. He is merely an observer here, in Frisk's horrifying dreamed memories.

The Doctor moves on to strapping their waist to the table, Frisk absently testing the bonds. They are nude, Chara can see Frisk's gown on a side table by the door.

Frisk does not move until the Doctor stands and retrieves a small device. He runs it over their collarbone, and it beeps softy. He sets the device on the tool covered tray beside the operating table, and Frisk begins taking deep, calming breaths, closing their eyes.

Chara is afraid. When Frisk was in the lab, he had only occasionally been aware enough to notice he was still 'alive', and that there was a world around him. He'd actually thought it was some kind of strange purgatory until Frisk nearly died, and he became fully aware.

"Subject WDG-F 3." The Doctor said, the device recording every word. "Analysis of the differences in hybrid reproductive systems v. human. Subject is gagged and restained. Beginning first incision."

Chara could see scissors in one skeletal hand, a scalpel in the other.

And he could feel Frisk's panic as she tried desperately to pull away from the nightmare.

The Doctor bent down between her spread legs-

And Chara wrenched them out of the memory and into Frisk's mindscape. He may not have been happy with her, but she didn't deserve to relive... That.

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It was always the same damn kinds of nightmares. Memories, really. Frisk hated them- she had no control, was forced to relive her worst days over and over again.

This one was the absolute worst, though. Others were painful, or terrifying, but that day had been violating on a level unreached by any other. She didn't really know why it felt so violating, and being cut open and having her body rooted around in in other locations did not. But it did, and she hated it.

She tried to squirm on the table, and was not at all surprised to find that she had no control over her body. She was merely an observer as the torment played out the way it had happened.

She was screaming at the top of her lungs, but not a sound passed her avatar's lips.

The Doctor bent down between her legs and she tried desperately to force herself awake, to keep from having to deal with it agai-

The world shifted, and she was back in the endless darkness, her own screams echoing around her.

Realizing she was no longer within the confines of her nightmare, Frisk shut her mouth with an audible click, curling into a trembling ball. Stars, had she really managed to pull free this time? Was it over? Tears poured down her cheeks and she rocked back and forth miserably.

"Hey, hey, shhh..." Chara's voice whispered soothingly, a pair of olive-skinned, red-clothed arms wrapping around her and pulling her into a warm lap. "It's okay, Featherbutt. I gotcha. Shhh..."

Frisk, not caring that she was supposed to be angry at the squatter in her mind, spun around in Chara's grip and clutched at his windbreaker, burying her face into his chest and sobbing.

"Shh, he can't hurt you anymore. Everything is okay, I'm here, I'm not leaving you alone, Featherbutt."

Heh... Wasn't this ridiculous? It was only a dream. It was in the past. She was safe, with her brothers and Miss Toriel who treated them so nicely it couldn't possibly be a trick. She was an idiot for getting so worked up-

"No, you're an idiot because you think that you don't have the right to cry. That... What he did to you? That wasn't okay. That will never be okay." Chara's voice trembled, and he twisted his hands into the green hospital gown Frisk's mental avatar still wore. "It's not right, Frisk. And it's okay for you to cry. It's okay for you to break down or get angry... I'm sorry, about earlier. I... I don't know what I was thinking." The older human ran his hand through her hair, listening to Frisk sniffle and cry.

"It h-hurt, so mu-uch... I-I... W-when he c-cut- and-"

"Did he do anything besides poke around?" Chara's voice was flat, and a glance up at his red eyes showed them to be hard and cold, like the stones at the bottom of the rivers in Waterfall.

"N-no. He cut me open and 'examined' my i-insides, an-nd the holes down there, he looked in there too, but that's normal right? He did it for other places, I j-just dunno why th-that time was the worst..."

"Oh, Frisk..." Chara stroked her hair, messing with one of the red feathers near the base, his eyes softening. "I'm sorry. Stars, I'm so sorry."

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He couldn't help but think of how much worse it could've been. It could've been so much worse.

When he'd seen that memory of the doctor leaning over the poor girl, he'd wanted to vomit. But it wasn't as bad as he thought.

She had been violated. That much was clear. She didn't deserve what had happened.

But she hadn't been raped, and Chara knew that it could've been so much worse. He wouldn't have been able to handle it if she'd gone through that.

Stars, he didn't think he could handle what did happen.

"Chara?"

"Yeah, Featherbutt?" He said, much more fondly than he would've before. Something buried in his soul had awoken the same older sibling instinct that had driven him to protect Asriel.

"Why do you say you're a boy? You look like a girl..."

Chara let out a strangled laugh. Trust this brat to completely turn the conversation on its head.

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 _You carefully pick your way up the rocky slope. Tears are blurring your vision, and you're not entirely sure of where you are. You'd thought you were on the way home, where Jamie could give you a big hug and make everything better, but it seems that, between the tears and your general unawareness of the world around you, you've gotten yourself lost._

 _It's all that mean Tommy's fault. Why did he push you into that puddle? You'd never done anything to him. You'd barely ever even spoken to him. And yet, he shoved you to the wet ground and stole your favorite plushie. How are you going to sleep tonight without Wyatt?_

 _You shiver, and look around. You really don't recognize where you are, but you're definiately headed upward. Up is good, because you'll be able to see more of the area, right? Then you'll be able to tell where you are!And once you know where you are, you'll be able to go home, and Ma and Daddy and Jamie can shower you with love and hugs and maybe Jamie can make Tommy give Wyatt back, because Jamie is the best big brother ever. Maybe Bianca will even be at your home, and she'll tell you more about the mythical Great War between humans and Monsters. It's such an interesting story-_

 _Wait._

 _You stop short._

 _The only area in your town that has a hill this big is Mt. Ebott!_

 _And you promised you'd never come to the mountain alone! It swallows up bad little girls who don't listen to their Mas and Daddies and they're never to be seen or heard from again! And you're on the mountain, alone!_

 _You turn around, prepared to run straight back down the hill before the mountain eats you alive, but you only take two steps before a hole_ that wasn't there before _opens in the muddy ground and you step straight into it._

 _You scream as you fall for what feels like forever._

 _Then, pain, and blissful blackness._

Flowey jolts upward with a cry, petals flailing and eyes darting about.

" **Holy fucking** _ **shit**_ _._ " The flower breathed, voice echoing more than usual in the little alcove he'd chosen to spend the night in. He'd had his suspicions after the last dream, but this confirmed it. He was seeing the human's memories.

But why? And how?

Obviously, it had to do with him having part of her soul, but why now and not months ago? Was the magic just taking its time settling? Was there an outside factor involved?

Why could _nothing_ ever be simple?

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Sans woke up to see his siblings still asleep. This was good, as it allowed him a moment of-

/Sans./

-never mind. No peace for him.

'what the hell do _you_ want?'

/I wanted to apologize./ Chara sighed, and Sans could feel the sheepish embarrassment rolling off the fairly deep female voice. /I was way, way out of line. You three... You've had to deal with so much _shit_... Seems I forgot that you're really just kids. Little brats, sure, but kids all the same. I shouldn't have been so rude... Can... Can we start over, maybe?/

Sans leaned back against the pillow, shutting his eye sockets with a small sigh.

/Frisk had a pretty bad nightmare last night./ Chara said quietly, ignoring his lack of response. /She's probably going to need you./

'… you can see what she's dreaming?'

/I did last night, at least. I'm almost as new at this whole voice-in-head thing as you guys are./

'almost?'

/I wasn't really _aware_ for more than a few minutes at a time while you three were still at the lab./

'ah.' Sans stretched sinuously, absently noting he'd shifted in his sleep again. He flicked his tail. 'i suppose that makes as much sense as you existing in the first place.'

/Yeah. I guess./ Chara quieted.

Frisk, jostled my Sans's movement, sat up and prodded Papyrus awake before pulling the toddler into a needy embrace. Sans shifted so he could speak.

"sis? you doin' okay?"

She looked at him rather blankly, her normally expressive eyes simply flat and dull, her mouth pressed into a slack line. He knew that look. She'd wake up with it every few days, and spend the entire day refusing to speak, even avoiding using the link as much as she could. The Doctor had _despised_ those days. He'd called them her 'snits' and always punished her harshly for them. But Frisk never gave in and spoke. He had to hand it to her, on days like today, her Determination really shone through.

There was a knock on the door, and Sans stiffened. Would Toriel punish Frisk for- No. Bad Sans. He'd decided to give her a chance, and his constant panic over whether she was insincere in her kindness was making it difficult.

Frisk set a warm, fleshy hand over his phalanges without looking at him. He turned his own hand over so he could squeeze hers. "we're awake, miss toriel."

Toriel entered, their freshly-cleaned, previously chosen clothing piled in her arms. "Good morning, my children."

"good morning."

"MORNING FLUFFY!"

Frisk simply waved slightly. If Toriel thought that was strange, she didn't comment.

She handed Sans and Frisk their respective outfits, taking Papyrus from Frisk long enough to slide him into his onesie. Frisk pulled on her little blue shirt and shorts with the purple stripes, and Sans did the same with his own chosen clothes.

Toriel held out the very large hoodie, and Sans eyed it for just a moment before taking it and shrugging it on. It actually was very comfortable, and he sent a small flash of gratitude across the bond so Frisk would know he appreciated it.

"My children, are you certain you ready for my meeting with my ex-husband? You do not have to come if you really do not wish to..."

Sans vehemently shook his head. He may be starting to trust Toriel, but there was no way he would let a total stranger near he or his siblings without her to protect them.

Toriel nodded, seeming to have expected that response. "We will be leaving in a few hours, then. Come, let us have some breakfast."

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Whew! Done. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to b- * **passes the fuck out** *

Sans: * **pokes me*** I think she's dead...

Frisk: Nah, she's just tired. Remember, guys, don't forget to check out our new tumblr!


	13. Hello

Stuff is still owned by the owners of stuff.

~! #$%^&*()_+

Snow was cold, and wet. Somehow, it was different from the chilled and soaked Waterfall, where there was standing water and mist constantly hanging in the air.

Sans didn't really mind the snow. It was much prettier than anything he'd seen in the lab, and while it made walking difficult, the crunching noises it made under his little yellow boots were soothing and almost peaceful. Papyrus squirmed in his arms as he and Frisk followed Toriel through the forest, drinking in all of the new sights, new sounds, new smells, new _everything_...

The open air reminded him that they were free now. It was easy, in the Ruins, to fall back into the 'trapped' mindset, and Sans would admit to himself that it had actually made him feel better to hand over their hard-won freedom to the elder monster.

The first thing he'd wanted to do when they'd escaped, once they'd been separated from Alphys, was to turn around and go back. Hotland had been so... big, so open... so intimidating. And yet, Frisk had grabbed him by the wrist and dragged him off, Determination shining in her big red eyes and her hair streaming behind her. Frisk had pushed them onward until they were too far to go back even if they wanted to, and then he'd done his best to be in charge... To be the big brother that Frisk and Papyrus deserved.

Now he was starkly reminded that, yes. They were free. Back in the open air of the Underground. Away from the labs. Away from the tests.

Away from the Doctor.

They were free.

And as they walked towards the little town just visible in the distance, Sans couldn't help but wonder what they should do with that freedom.

~! #$%^&*()_+

Alphys arrived early at Undyne's having every intention to get started on their search in Snowdin and the surrounding areas immediately.

Unfortunately, Undyne's mother had other ideas.

"Alphys, dear! Have you even eaten breakfast?"

"Well, um, n-no." The six-year-old stammered.

"Well, then I insist you stay long enough to fill your belly. You girls' exploration can wait a while! The Underground will still be there when you're done with breakfast."

"But Mom-"

"No buts, Undyne." Evanna scolded. The fish woman bustled into the kitchen. "You need to eat, too."

"Mrs. Ambrose, I packed so-"

"Alphys, I'm sure you did pack some snacks. But that's no substitute for good old-fashioned shimmerberry pancakes, right?"

Alphys sighed in defeat. "N-no, ma'am. Thank you."

Evanna chuckled. "There you go, dear."

~! #$%^&*()_+

Waterfall was next. Thankfully, Flowey had already looked through a good portion of the area, and if the human or her skeletal companions had any sense whatsoever, they'd have kept going _away_ from Hotland.

Hopefully, he'd make it to Snowdin around midday...

~! #$%^&*()_+

Asgore stepped onto the Riverperson's boat with a tired sigh and a heavy feeling in his soul. "Thank you, my friend."

"Of course, Your Highness..." The cloaked figure said calmly, pushing the boat off from the dock. "Tra la la... Row, row, row your goat~."

Asgore chuckled.

"It is not very often I get the chance to use that one." The Riverperson said with a laugh in their voice, never letting up on their rhythmic rowing.

"I don't imagine you do..." sighed the King. "Not since Chara and Asriel stopped riding with you every day..."

The figure sighed. "Yes, they were little darlings... Tra la la... The dead and lost never truly leave us, even when their souls fade~."

Asgore nodded. "I don't think my sons would at all approve of my actions, recently... I know Tori didn't. But what could I have done? Humans took my son away, they locked us away..."

"Tra la la... Angels don't always have wings, and sometimes they do~"

Asgore sat up straight. "Excuse me?"

"Tra la la... And sometimes prophecy is lost in translation~"

Asgore groaned, knowing from experience the Mysterious Cloaked Person was not going to elaborate. Or repeat themself.

"Tra la la... Beware fate's winding paths. They may intersect in ways not previously expected~."

"I'm so confused." The large fluffy goat man muttered, rubbing his temples with the thumb and index finger of one massive paw.

"Tra la la... Did you know a seraph is the highest rank of angel in human Christianity? They have six wings~."

"Why are you telling me this?" Asgore nearly whined. "I don't understand! Please stop with your cryptic statements that only make sense after whatever is going to happen happens!"

The Riverperson chuckled, continuing to push their little craft towards the frozen town of Snowdin.

They loved their jobs.

~! #$%^&*()_+

Bianca Snodgrass sighed after she opened her boyfriend's laptop and found the missing children's database already pulled up. How long had Jamie spent staring at the picture of a little girl, who was smiling the frozen smile of a child trapped in front of their school photographer?

 _Francine "Frisk" Thana Seraphee. Age five. Last seen three blocks from Heartsong Primary School. Believed to have climbed Mt. Ebott after another child was witnessed bullying her. If you have any information on the whereabouts of Francine, please contact our tip line at (555) 555-0581._

 _Sex: F._

 _Hair: Brown._

 _Eyes: Blue._

 _Frisk really had been a lovely little girl_ , Bianca thought with a small, fond smile. It really burned her up that the whole reason Frisk was even missing was because some little twat who's parents didn't know how to discipline their child had shoved her into a puddle.

And the little brat's mother refused to even make him apologize. It didn't matter to Linda that her bratty son had probably gotten another child killed, she just kept parroting that her 'perfect angel' would never have picked on a little girl. She conveniently ignored the dozen or so other children who'd seen it happen. These kids were also on Bianca's shit list. After all, they'd just stood there and watched while Linda's brat called Frisk names, shoved her into a puddle, and stole her plushie.

Linda had even refused to hand over the plushie. Bianca couldn't help a little snicker at the memory of what happened next. She'd never seen Jamie so pissed.

" _Listen here, you frigid bitch." The well-built teenager hissed, towering over the short, skinny blond that was Linda Smith. "This-" He snatched the dusty yellow kitten plushie from the little brat beside her. Tommy immediately burst into tears. "-belongs to_ my sister _. I would know, I bought her the goddamned thing! You may be too much of a moron to believe you're raising a baby Hitler, but your kid is a little fucking thug. And when Frisk comes home, she's gonna want Wyatt. And she's not gonna be happy when she learns that your little snot-nosed twat had his grubby little paws all over her best friend."_

 _He'd stormed off with the plush before Linda could even stop spluttering in outrage, Bianca's arm around his shoulders._

"I wonder, Frisk..." Bianca muttered, running a single finger down the digital cheek of a little girl who may never hold her favorite toy again. "Are you still alive out there somewhere?" She pushed her glasses up her nose, absently noting that they were filthy and she really should clean them... "I don't see how you can be, but your big bro hasn't given up hope yet. Guess he's more steadfast than I am... Or maybe he just loves you too much. But, if you are out there somewhere... I swear, I'll find you. I want to hear him, laugh again. I want to see him smile..."

Bianca picked up her thick notebook. She never went anywhere without it; She had horrible memory issues, and so kept it around to keep important dates and notes within. She had a plan- She was going to spend the next couple weeks at the library, trying to find out exactly _why_ nobody had ever returned from a trip to Mt. Ebott alone.

~! #$%^&*()_+

At precisely eleven o'clock, Toriel entered the bar with the three children at her heels. "Grillby, my old friend." The goat woman greeted with a warm smile.

The flame monster glanced over in her direction from where he was cleaning a table, an invisible smile lighting up his eyes. "Toriel." He spotted the children. "And who are- Is that a human?"

Frisk squeaked and hid behind Sans. Toriel chuckled. "Yes, and no, my friend. Allow me to explain..."

~! #$%^&*()_+

A filling breakfast later, Alphys and Undyne walked out into the open air of Waterfall.

It was time to head to Snowdin. The pair trekked to the Riverperson's dock and rang the bell.

After a moment, an answering ring came from a little ways towards Hotland, and they grinned at each other.

"Tra la la, I am coming~" Echoed down the cavern. The boat glided smoothly into the dock about ten minutes later, and the girls blinked in shock at seeing the other passenger.

"H-hello, Y-Your H-Highness!" Alphys squeaked, trying not to let her terror show on her face. Was the King looking for Sans and his siblings, too? Or was it just a coincidence?

"Ah, hello young lady." Asgore smiled softly, reassuringly.

"Where are you girls bound~?" The cloaked boatperson asked.

"Snowdin?" Undyne said, looking wary. Thankfully, she had the sense to avoid accusing the King of all manner of heinous crimes with any proof, but Alphys could tell she was just bursting to start a long tirade.

"Excellent~ That is where I am already heading." They sounded pleased as punch as they once again pushed off the dock.

Alphys and Undyne crammed themselves into one seat, across from King Asgore.

There were a few minutes of awkward silence, then:

"Tra la la... Children see far more than some believe~."

Alphys stiffened slightly, thinking of the lab beneath her father's workspace, the one so full of horror and pain.

"Tra la la, You are closer than you think to that which you seek. Do not give up~."

"R-really?" Alphys whispered.

"Tra la la, beware. Know that angels will fall without the love of others to guide them~."

"O-okay." Alphys said quietly. "I think I understand." She sat up a little straighter.

She was Determined, for once in her short life. She would find her friends.

She would help them.

The boat pulled smoothly into Snowdin's small port.

~! #$%^&*()_+

Flowey steeled himself and popped out of the frigid snow. Stars, if Hotland was bad, Snowdin was ten times worse. He glanced around and was utterly shocked to see the little tech genius, her fish girl friend, and _his dad_ all climbing out of the Riverperson's boat.

Though the girls split away from the King as quickly as they could, and Asgore walked with purpose towards the town. Flowey watched the duo of little girls looking around, and wondered...

Perhaps... he should follow them?

~! #$%^&*()_+

Grillby was utterly _incensed_ at her story, especially once Toriel gave him the name of the children's torturer. A name none of the three had heard before.

"Wingdings Gaster is walking _dust_." Grillby spat, pacing angrily behind his bar. He was very, very glad the building had as many fireproofing spells as it could handle on it. The heat he was giving off would've torched the place, otherwise.

The older children watched him warily, while the seemingly unconcerned toddler happily sucked at the juice box he'd been given.

He knew he was frightening them, but he couldn't really control himself. His own LOVE from the war was nearly taking over his entire soul.

He wanted to see the Royal Scientist, and anyone else involved, _**burn**_ _._

He wanted the people who thought harming innocent children like this was okay to pay. In blood and dust and fire.

Toriel watched him pace, feeling her own rage mixing in the air with the elemental's.

Whether he was involved or not, her ex-husband had a lot to answer for.

There was an almost tentative knock on the door.

~! #$%^&*()_+

CLIFFHANGER!

Lots of setup for the future in this chapter. Hot Dad! Bianca! More Creepy Riverperson! Goat Dad! Flowey!


	14. If Today Was Your Last Day

*Evil cackle*

ASLO, FANART. GO HEAP PRAISE ON THIS:

(h)(t)(t)(p):(/)(/)(artisteiffel.)(deviantart.)(com/)art/Counting-Stars-Cover-Art-609233578

~! #$%^&*()_+

Toriel ushered Frisk and her brothers to sit together on the floor behind the bar, where they would not be immediately visible from the room itself. She handed them a three thousand piece puzzle and instructed them to "Please be quiet, my children. This discussion may get... Heated... And I do not wish for you to accidentally be harmed."

Frisk glanced at Sans, then the pair nodded seriously at Toriel.

She gave them a smile and stepped out of their view.

Frisk heard the door open, and then there were murmured greetings from a voice much deeper than they'd ever heard before, though Frisk found the sound soothing in a familiar way.

"Toriel. Grillby. Good day to you."

When Toriel spoke, her voice was colder than they had ever heard it, and Sans unconsciously pulled Papyrus closer to him. Frisk actually hid her body behind her wings, curling them around her like a physical shield. "Has Dr. Gaster been up to anything _interesting_ lately, Asgore?"

There was a moment of silence. "What do you mean, Tori-el?" The deep voice asked, sounding puzzled.

There was the sound of rustling papers, and Frisk guessed that Toriel was showing the deep voice man some of the pictures she'd taken of their injuries. "This, Asgore, is what our _old friend_ has been doing in his free time."

"Wh-wha?! Th-that's not possible! Gaster would never-"

Toriel snarled. "So when these three _innocent children_ who have more scars than metaphorical skin tell me that 'the Doctor' was the one who _put_ those scars there, and then they tell me that the Doctor is a skeleton, and the metal plates _drilled into their hands_ _ **just so happen to have the initials**_ 'WDG' engraved into them, I'm just supposed to believe it's a _coincidence_ that Wingdings Gaster is the only member of a nearly _extinct_ species of monster who is a scientist in your employ?"

More silence. Frisk twitched, moving to try and peek at what was happening from behind the bar, but Sans snagged the back of her jacket and pulled her over to him and Papyrus.

 _ ***Learning The Doctor's real name fills you with DETERMINATION***_

/Wha-/ Chara cut off his shocked exclamation, realizing that the adults were talking again. That, and he was fairly certain he was the only one who had noticed that...

But if he'd really heard that soft, musical voice again... Could that mean-?

The deep voice was trembling and quiet. "I cannot believe... He was our friend-"

"Sans, could you please come here a moment, my child?" Toriel's voice asked softly. "You do not have to."

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Frisk nodded at him when he looked to her for reassurance, and so Sans cautiously crawled out from behind the bar. Once in sight, he stood and walked over to Toriel, not looking up from his feet until he was right next to her large, furry leg.

When he did look up, it was to see another goat monster like her, but absolutely massive. At least a foot taller and twice as broad. He squeaked and latched onto Toriel's leg, burying his face into her fur as if he could turn invisible simply because the giant fluffy man was no longer in his field of vision. He shook in terror, bones rattling softly as they clanked together in his fright.

A soft paw set itself upon the top of his skull, and Toriel was bending over him, muttering in a soothing tone, though he paid no attention to the words as she rubbed comforting circles on top of his head.

He could feel Frisk's frustration with not being able to see what was going on. 'stay where you are!' Sans mentally barked.

'But-'

'frisk! stay!'

'I'm not a dog!' She snapped, but dropped it and stayed put. He could feel her seething, though, and mentally frowned.

Something touched his arm and Sans yelped, jumping away.

He stared like a trapped animal into the large red eyes of the now kneeling goat man, a loud screech ripped into the air, and everything went to hell.

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Frisk reacted on instinct. Sans's frightened yelp put her into combat mode and so she reacted accordingly.

The five-year-old shoved Papyrus safely into the corner under the bar and let out a loud, shrill screech- a disorienting tactic that had always served her well in the combat simulator. She snatched Sans's soul in her dark blue magic and pulled him into the air and then behind the bar with her, then grabbed up the enemy's and flung it away as hard as she could. Loud crashes and grunts accompanied her attack.

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"Frisk! My child, please, calm yourself!" Toriel gasped. She knew the girl could use some degree of dark blue magic, she'd seen it when Frisk had retrieved Sans's hoodie from that trash pile in Waterfall, but flinging Asgore across the room without so much as breaking a sweat was something she hadn't been expecting.

There was a soft 'ting!' and her ex-husband's soul appeared. And at the same time, a similar soft noise came from behind the bar.

Oh no.

Had Frisk really forced them into a battle? How did she do that?! Had... Had Gaster made her fight? Toriel had never actually checked the children's LOVE, perhaps even subconsciously afriad of what she'd find, but now she wished she'd looked, and discussed battle mechanics with them.

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Frisk vaulted over the bar, landing in a crouch with just the balls of her feet on the floor and her wings half-extended, muscles tight and ready for her to spring. Dark blue energy swirled around her hands, and her vision had a distinct tint of the same color to it, as though she was looking through stained glass.

Frisk knew that she wasn't the best fighter. She was fast and good at dodging and had strong magic, but she lacked finesse and control, and channeling magic through her hands hurt quite a bit. Even now, she could feel the tips of her fingers starting to burn, and she knew if she continued to force magic through she would actually burn herself. In addition, the excess bleed off was tremendous- Frisk was wasting as much magic as she was using, which tired her out much faster than it should. She often wondered if she were doing something wrong, but her method of channeling magic was the same as the Doctor's and Sans's, and they didn't have these issues.

But these weren't even the biggest problem.

No, the biggest issue Frisk had in a fight was her inability to form standard white attacks. She'd tried for ages, but she just couldn't figure out how to make the normal unaffinitied attacks form. Which meant she had no base when it came to light blue and purple attacks. Rather than forming the white and then infusing it with colored magic as Sans had tried to teach her, Frisk had to force the colored to take the shape she needed. This severely weakened the attacks, and created even more wasted magic, making her even more tired.

It was a vicious cycle that made fighting far harder than it should've been.

The enemy got to his feet just as she gave up on keeping the magic going. It wasn't her turn, anyway.

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Asgore stared. This... Toriel had called her Frisk, but... It was like looking at a younger version of his late son. His breath caught in his chest at the sight of her wings, halfway extended from her back. She was crouched in a very feral manner, looking like a harpy or gargoyle or other such creature.

From the distance he was at, her soul seemed to be bright red, though the dim bar lighting was shining off of it in a peculiar manner, making it appear as if it had white spots...

The second-to-last soul needed.

And she had pulled him into a fight.

Why?

Was it because he had startled the skeleton boy? He hadn't intended to, he'd only wanted to comfort the clearly terrified child.

And she'd been using magic. Colored magic, at that. Integrity. Strong enough to throw him so hard that he hit the front wall of the bar with quite a bit of force.

And yet... She had attacked him, and first.

Asgore nodded to himself, justifying his actions, and checked her stats.

 _Frisk_

 _LOVE 4 Atk 5 Def 4 HP 20_

 _*She is filled with Determination._

LOVE _four_!? B-but... She was so young. And yet, she was extremely dangerous. The lives she would've had to take, the cruelty she would've had to show to get LOVE that high so soon in her life...

It would be a mercy to take her soul to break the barrier.

Toriel would be angry. But as long as she was still alive to hate him, he could live with that... Keeping something this dangerous close to her would no doubt end in the death of his love.

It was better this way.

Asgore summoned his trident.

"ASGORE!" Toriel shrieked, readying several fireballs. Grillby did the same.

No. He couldn't allow them to interfere.

"I apologize, Tori, Grillby." Bright pink barriers made of paper thing magic srung up around them, trapping the pair in orbs made of his Amity magic.

" _ASGORE_!" Toriel began attacking the shield with everything she had, screeching like a feral animal as she desperately tried to stop him from doing what she had to. But the magic, fueled by his love for her, held fast.

Grillby, though he was much calmer about it, was also attempting to break free. Asgore bolstered that shield with some excess magic before turning his attention to the girl.

"I am sorry, young one. But you have started down a dark path-"

"no!" The skeleton boy was suddenly just _there_ beside the girl, despite having been thrown behind the bar by the girl. He was still shaking, but his left eye was glowing with magic, as was that hand. "you fight her, you fight me." The little white pupils he'd gotten a brief glimpse of when he'd touched the boy's arm were gone, leaving only a black void in one eye, the other filled with swirling, barely controlled blue magic.

Asgore steeled himself and checked him.

 _Sans_

 _LOVE 6 Atk 1 Def 1 HP 1_

 _*You feel like you're going to have a bad time._

Six. LOVE _six_. Casting aside those _abysmal_ stats, this little one had an even _higher_ LOVE!

Well... He didn't have much of a choice, did he?

Asgore tried not to think about what Chara and Asriel would say.

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/This is getting out of hand!/

'He's going to try to kill us!'

'he started it!'

/That's debatable! And even if he did start it, that doesn't mean you have to finish i-/

'Fireballs incoming!' Frisk yelped over the bond and the pair shot off in different directions, ducking and weaving around the dangerous attacks.

Sans managed to get around all of them, thank the stars, but Frisk got nicked in the hip at one point, and when Asgore sent a barrage of rapid-fire orange and blue tridents at her, she froze when she should've moved and regrettably was stabbed in the right wing.

She leapt onto a table, cursing mentally. There was dust in the back of her throat, and blood spilling onto her feathers, turning the bright red and yellow keratin a much darker shade of crimson.

It hurt.

"Fuck you!" She yelled at the goat man, raising her hand and turning his soul purple. It was actually easier to summon the perseverance magic this time, probably because Frisk was getting really tired and she was in a lot of pain. What she wanted to do was curl up with her brothers and sleep.

Sans teleported in front of her and conjured a massive amount of white bones, all of them flying at Asgore, who, trapped by Frisk's magical threads as he was, couldn't dodge in time.

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Sans whined in frustration when he realized that, despite the good two hundred bones he'd managed to pull out of thin air, he'd barely put a dent in the giant monster's HP.

Stupid magic, only dealing one damage a hit...

Frisk audibly grit her teeth behind him, and wispy purple feathers, razor sharp but not nearly as dangerous as they should be, began flying at their foe, traveling along the threads at high speed.

Again, though a good portion of them hit, a quick look at the giant's HP was enough to prove that Frisk wasn't having any better luck.

Sans braced himself, getting ready to dodge. It was the big monster's turn now.

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Asgore braced himself. It was his turn now.

Ignoring Sans for the moment, he focused on Frisk.

He rather thought Sans would be easier to beat, or perhaps even bring down peacefully, if Frisk was no longer standing.

He shot as many fireballs as he could conjour at her in a random pattern, feeling profoundly relieved at the pained yelp he received somewhere in the middle of the barrage, then, tracking her as she ran around, ducking behind furniture and zigzagging through his attacks, he fell back on the method he'd always used to great effect in the war. A ridiculous amount of light blue tridents, the patience magic forcing her to freeze, and then a single orange one, right behind a blue one.

If he'd done it right, she would stop for the blue attack and be unable to get moving in time once she realized there was an orange as well.

~! #$%^&*()_+

Frisk had to stop, there were far too many blue attacks for her to pick her way through. She would have to wait them out; She was pretty sure she couldn't take another hit. She'd stopped bleeding, at least, dust clotting the wound and keeping it from continuing to gush blood. That wasn't necessarily a _good_ thing, though, because the last time she'd stopped bleeding purely because there was too much dust in the way, the Doctor had nearly killed her on accident. He'd been trying to take a sample of her femur bone, and had cut too fast, too deep, and her foot had began to crumble into blood-soaked dust before he'd even realized...

Caught up in bad memories, Frisk never even noticed the orange trident that skewered her directly in the soul.

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Sans watched his sister fall as if in slow motion.

It started fairly simply, she'd stopped to wait out an attack. He could feel her worry about the wound in her wing, and he realized the moment she found herself thinking about the lab that things were going to go wrong.

And go wrong they did. The warning had barely formed in his mind, let alone left his mouth, when the three-pronged spear of orange magic struck her straight through the chest.

Decades later, Sans would still be able to describe this moment with perfect clarity,

For a second, his little sister just looked confused, a small frown marring her face and her eyes half-closed. Slowly, she raised a hand up to touch the trident. Her eyes widened, and then she choked, falling to her knees and coughing harshly, blood that was chunky with little knots of dust dribbling down her chin.

The dusting started with the tips of her wings. There was a sound like sand being poured onto a plate from high above as her feathers began to simply disintegrate. The deterioration traveled down towards her back, picking up momentum as she continued to cough. Then, her wings a pile of ash on the floor, it began to eat at her back.

It was like a trainwreck. Sans wanted nothing more than to look away, but he couldn't. He just couldn't stop staring.

It took eleven seconds, from the moment Frisk had been stabbed to the moment her soul, her handplate, and three large feathers from her hair fell into the pile of red-stained, clumpy dust on the shining, polished wooden floor. But to Sans, it felt like eleven centuries.

Sans couldn't breathe, he couldn't think. He could vaguely hear Toriel's scream of anguish, but he didn't register what itg was or where it came from. It was just fuzzy, worthless background.

The world had ended. So why was it still spinning? Where was the fire, the explosions, the end of all life?

Half of his entire universe had just come crashing down.

How was he going to explain this to Paps? Would he even live that long? The goat man was eyeing him in a way that scared him.

The world had ended.

"you killed her..." He was crying... His rib cage hurt. His soul felt like it was on fire. "you killed my sister..."

It was too much. It was all to much. Sans felt dizzy. He couldn't get air in fast enough, which was odd because he was pretty sure he didn't _need_ air, so why was he trying so desperately to bring it in!?

Stars, he couldn't do this.

Frisk was dead!

Sans fell to his knees.

He couldn't focus. Couldn't think. His vision was going fuzzy.

That was okay. It was better not to think.

Sans let himself fall into blackness.

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 ***** Looks over chapter* Yeeeeah... I think I'm going to hide in the bomb shelter until I get chapter 15 done. *Grabs laptop and runs like a pussy*


	15. Relapse

*pokes head out of bunker and sees an angryish mob led by Sunshinemoonpops, sansthehuman pointing an assault rifle at me, tseuG glaring and mouthing that I'm gonna have a bad time, LunarCatNinja glaring at me, KajiMei pounding on the wrong door and yelling that I am a 'but face', demanding I bring 'frisky child' back, melody looking torn between kissing me and punching me, ThatOneNightmare rolling on the floor crying, and Tyler smirking victoriously and waving a pitchfork in my general direction. I look back and forth in terror, throw the chapter and bonus material into the mob, and duck back into my bomb shelter. Then, deciding that that isn't safe enough, I go down to the bomb shelter _underneath_ the bomb shelter.*

(Please also go to the tumblr and check out the freaking AWESOME fanart I got. It's not the same one as last chapter, and it's really freaking cool. I'd put in a link but ffn hates them. You can't miss it, though. Because it wasn't drawn in mspaint like all my crummy drawings. XD)

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Toriel felt numb. She'd stopped screaming, stopped fighting against the barrier her fucking ex-husband had trapped her in. She simply stared at the little pile of bloodstained dust that had once been a timid little girl with a lovely smile.

"D-dust?" Asgore stammered, staring in horror. "Wh-where did the dust come from? Humans don't turn to dus-"

"With 'all due respect', Your Highness, you are an absolute _**moron.**_ " Grillby snapped, more than a little sarcasm obvious in his tone when it came to addressing the King. "Did she look human? At first glance, yes. But it was obvious by the time you attacked her that something else was going on! And even then-"

Asgore walked over to the little pile of dust, blocking out the tongue-lashing that he knew he deserved, but wasn't willing to hear. He knelt down and, wrapping part of his cape around his paw, he scooped the little soul into his hand. He knew better than to touch it directly.

So the white portions hadn't been a trick of the light...?

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Sans cracked his eye sockets open and looked around blearily, trying to gain his bearings. The place was unfamiliar, but the smell of burning ozone and excess magic assaulted his nasal cavity and the memories came flooding back.

His sister, she was...

She had...

Frisk had fallen.

Sans shivered at the thought, but quickly went limp, pretending to still be out of it in hopes that the giant who'd killed her wouldn't notice him, tears pricking at the corners of his eye sockets. 'frisk? _frisk_!?' He nearly shouted over the bond.

But there was no response.

'BROTHER? WHERE SISTER? WHY NOT FEEL?'

Papyrus! Shit...

'i-i-, uh...'

He felt more than heard the little sniffle, as he sensed his sibling about to crawl out from behind the bar.

'please, paps... stay put. i-it's just another test!' Sans stammered out the first thing that came to mind. 'the doctor, he wants you to sit still and be quiet while i try and find frisk, okay?'

'B-BUT BROTHER SAY NO MORE DOCTOR! NO MORE TEST!'

'i know, paps. i-i was w-wrong.' his mental voice trembled. 'now please, quiet time and still sits, alright? i-it'll all be o-okay...'

'QUIET TIME AND STILL SITS.' Papyrus agreed reluctantly, his own fear and worry nearly drowning out Sans's.

Very slowly, Sans raised his head a fraction of an inch and focused on what was going on around him. He had to find Frisk. Monsters could fuse with human souls, right? The Doctor had said that! He didn't really know if it would work, after all Frisk's patchwork soul was only about half human, but he certainly wanted to try. Fusing with Frisk would bring her back, right? It sort of made sense- a soul was the very culmination of one's being, it was everything one had, everything they were, and so fusing with her would bring her back, keep her precious little heart from fading like the souls of the weak, common monsters that the Doctor had had them kill to raise their LOVE had.

The fire man was yelling at the big monster, and Sans looked around for Frisk's soul. It was near her... her dust... he was pretty sure it was near her dust.

And there it was. He saw the shining red and white glow nestled in the horrifying remains of his precious little sister and wanted to heave. He was going to have to _touch_ it to get her soul...

Then the big monster started to move towards it. Sans went limp before the goat man could notice him moving, but he kept his head up so he could see.

Sans watched in incomprehension as the furry monstrosity wrapped his massive paw in part of his cloak and reached for the light in the pile of dust.

It hit him like a ton of bricks. The giant monster was picking up his sister!

She was being picked up by her killer!

Sans started to teleport-

-and everything went black.

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Flowey had followed the tech genius and her fishy friend as they hunted around the outskirts of Snowdin. The little lizard girl was looking dead on her feet, her scales nearly blue with cold.

"Come on, we need to get you inside and warmed up." The fish commanded, "You'll be no use helping them, even if we find them, if you're hypothermic."

The lizard girl didn't put up much of a fight as her friend dragged her back to town.

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Undyne walked up to the first public place she could see, a restaurant by the name of Grillby's. It looked closed, but she could hear yelling and the door wasn't locked. She swung the door open without hesitation.

WHAT?!

The King, a fire elemental trapped in a bubble made of Amity magic, the Queen (?), also trapped in a bubble (?), a pile of red _dust_ (!?), and a little skeleton that seemed to be unconscious (!) were all scattered about the room.

Alphys stifled a horrified shriek beside her, and Undyne turned to see her friend looking back and forth between the skeleton and the dust in absolute horror, both her shaking paws covering her mouth..

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Flowey popped up in the snow between the lizard girl's feet , wanting to get a look at whatever had her so freaked.

He saw one of the human's skeletons lying on the ground, raising his head, tears pouring from his eye sockets.

"D-dust? Wh-where did the dust come from!?" Asgore, his _father_ , stammered. "Humans don't turn to dus-"

He was cut off by the fire man, but the sentient flower didn't hear another word.

He had failed. The human was dead. He could guess she'd turned to dust because of whatever the Doctor had done to her, but the end result was the same.

His father had killed the human, and he had failed her.

He popped back into the ground, screaming his frustration into the dirt-

-And everything went black.

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 _ ***Frisk. You must stay determined, little fallen star!***_

The world around her was nothing but incomprehensible black void (again.), and she didn't recognize the soft, musical voice that hissed the words into the air around her.

She tried to move, but her limbs wouldn't obey- did she even have limbs? She distinctly recalled her body turning to dust (And wasn't that a horrifying thought? She'd _turned to dust_. Talk about nightmare fuel.). How was she even capable of recollection? She should be dead. Or at least in pain. Shouldn't she be in agony right now, if, for some reason, she _wasn't_ dead. Turning to dust had certainly hurt, like acid eating away at her (And yes, she knew what that felt like. Gaster had gotten curious about the effects of acid on her skin one day.). Yet, she felt... nothing.

Nothing but Determination, coursing through every inch of her.

 _ ***Would you like to Reload?***_ The voice queried.

 _Reload?_ She wondered.

And suddenly, light, color and sound assaulted her.

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Flowey found himself following the fish girl and tech genius again. He felt slightly disoriented, as though he'd been spinning around very fast in the dark.

And hadn't he been in Snowdin proper?

What? How-

 _ **Oh.**_

Hope coursed through him. He knew this feeling. He just hadn't felt it in quite a while.

The world had reset, somehow.

Perhaps... The human could reset?

Had his desire to protect her manifested in passing the ability onto her? Did she just have it on her own? Or had someone else entirely restarted the world?

Either way, he had to make sure things turned out better this time. He couldn't allow himself to fail, because what if this was just a fluke? He couldn't guarentee a third chance, so he had to be absolutely certain to get it right this time.

And, looking over at the dinosaur girl and the overenthusiastic fish, he was struck with an idea.

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Sans felt the aborted magic of a teleport flicker around him and looked around wildly.

He was back behind the bar.

Looking right at Frisk.

His sister, shaking in fear and looking incredibly confused.

Alive and whole. Not a scratch on her.

He watched in shock as she patted down her body, eyes wide and mouth moving, too shocked to form words.

What?!

How?!

'SISTER! SISTER IS BACK!' Papyrus flung himself into her arms. 'SANS SAY IT WAS TEST! P DO GOOD?'

Frisk raised an eyebrow at Sans.

'what was I supposed to tell him?! you fell down! how are you here?!'

From in front of the bar, they heard the giant say, in a quiet, trembling voice, "I cannot believe... He was our friend-"

Sans growled softly. Too soft for the adults to hear, but definitely there.

/I know what happened./ Chara's voice sounded awed. /You reloaded./

'Say what?!' Frisk demanded. 'Reload? That's... when you put more ammo in a weapon, right?'

Exasperation. /Sometimes, Featherbutt, I really worry about living in your head. Yes, that is one meaning of the word 'reload'./ A sigh. /But it can also mean 'starting over from your last Save', among a slew of other things./

'... save?'

/Yes. It's something that I used to be able to do, emphasis on used to. At certain times, I would feel an abundance of Determination, and a voice would tell me so, creating a Save, and at any time after those moments, I would be able to essentially go back to that point in time while retaining the memories from before I reloaded. It's really freaking useful, especially when your partner-in-crime also retains their memories. See, most people don't, so things play out exactly the same each time you reset, provided you don't do anything different. Ergo, you want a different result, you do something different./

'and she can... reload... even if she dies?'

/Yes. Like I said, it's really freaking useful. And it looks like both Sans and Papyrus remember the last timeline... That's actually really odd. People who retain their memories are really hard to come by. The only one I knew of was my brother... Maybe it has to do with the fact that you're soul bonded? Something to look into at a later date, at least.../

"Sans, could you please come here a moment, my child?" Toriel's voice asked softly. "You do not have to."

Sans shook his head rapidly, grabbing Frisk and clinging to her.

He was _not_ about to let her die again. Reloads or not, that had been horrifying to watch.

By some miracle, he had his sister back.

He was not going to waste that miracle.

Hot tears made out of blue magic poured down his cheeks and he sobbed softly, burying his face into her shoulder and squashing the toddler between them. Paps looked up at them in confusion. 'NO MORE SADS, PLEASE? AM SORRY P FAILED TEST.'

'It's fine, Paps. There wasn't really a test this time.' Frisk soothed, rubbing the toddler's skull.

'NO TEST?'

'Nope! Sans was wrong again.'

'SILLY BROTHER.' Papyrus snuggled into Sans's chest. 'SILLY SILLY.'

Sans let out a watery chuckle that sounded more like a sob.

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Toriel poked her head over the top of the bar, checking to make sure the children were alright after Sans hadn't come out. She saw that the child was crying, and instantly felt bad, assuming his reaction was from her asking him to come out in the open.

She stood in front of the bar, readying pink magic in case Asgore decided to come any closer, now that he knew that at least one of the children was here. Her ex-husband wasn't exactly good at making logical choices- She'd always been the brains of the Royal Family. He might try to harm Frisk if he saw her before Toriel had a chance to explain, despite how dumb of a move that would be.

Asgore had certainly made more moronic choices over the years.

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 _ **BONUS STUFF: THE ORIGINAL CHAPTER 2 (Can be found on Ao3 under 'The Story of Us', part four of Defying Gravity)**_

 _ **This was supposed to be the original chapter 2, which, as I've said several times, I rewrote entirely because of a single comment. I rather like the direction I took instead of the more cookie-cutter approach this one would've brought, but I figured I would show you guys anyway.**_

 _Grillby was a pragmatic monster. He prided himself on his professionalism, on his bar being a clean, safe, family-friendly environment where anyone (even a human) could come, eat, and not be judged._

 _Because of this attitude, Grillby's had become a hotspot for rumors and news over the decades. Grillby knew far more about the inhabitants of Snowdin than most people thought._

 _So Grillby wasn't all that surprised when Dogeressa came to him, asking if he knew anything about the 'things' that had been knocking over trash cans at night all over town. Grillby himself had been visited by them once or twice, but hadn't thought much of it until he heard the stories... Some people thought they'd seen a human, others swore it was a bird. There was talk of skeleton dogs - beasts, really - and tiny children. Some people were saying there were two, or three, but that they always ran at the first sign someone was watching._

 _No one could agree on anything._

 _He explained this, and Dogeressa nodded and said, "Those are the reports we've been getting, too. The townsfolk are starting to panic, especially with the supposed human involved. They're starting to talk about laying traps, catching whatever it is themselves."_

 _"If I see anything, I'll let you know."_

 _"Thanks, Grillby."_

 _And so it was that that night, Grillby set up a stakeout. He put a significant amount of food in the trash: Cooked, uncooked, packaged... He made sure it had extra spices added to tantalize the trash raiders further. And he added a warm blanket that he made sure to scorch the corner of so it would be less suspicious._

 _Then he set up an area he could watch from without his glow giving him away. Just before dark, he sat down in his makeshift hideaway and waited._

 _It was hours before he heard them._

 _It was a soft rummaging noise that alarmed him, so quiet he almost missed it._

 _A slight glow caught his eyes, like his flame but considerably weaker. He positioned himself to get a better view._

 _His trash can was lying on its side, and he could see small, bare, human-like feet poking out as their owner dug through the bag as quietly as possible._

 _Beside the can, a small bone... Beast... Perhaps the size of a large house cat and wearing a dirty, oversized hoodie paced silently, its head swinging back and forth._

 _Tied in place on the beast's back with a long, dirty red scarf was a tiny little skeleton child bundled up in several blankets and seemingly sound asleep._

 _The bone beast looked over at the one in the trash can for a moment._

 _They backed out and produced the blanket and a bunch of food, most of which was in boxes._

 _The animal let out an annoyed snuffling sound._

 _Grillby stared at what seemed to be a young human girl with long, tangled brown hair that had softly glowing red and yellow feathers interspersed in it. She crossed her arms at the beast and raised an eyebrow._

 _The skeleton rolled its eyes and gestured away, as if to say they needed to leave._

 _The girl looked even more irritated, and to Grillby's shock, two dark shapes, impossible to make out in the darkness, extended behind her. They were pulled back just as quickly, though, as though her irritation had caused an involuntary response._

 _The skeleton grumbled but seemed to agree to appease the child. Within a few moments it transformed into a small child-like skeleton._

 _The scarf tying the other skeleton child had shifted, but it was tied in such a way that, even with the strange, impossible shape shifting, the young one was still safely swaddled and secured, now hanging on the hoodie-wearing child's back._

 _"we really should just go, frisk."_

 _'Frisk' gestured to all the food and supplies._

 _"but we already have enough."_

 _She pointed upward, then gave an affected shiver._

 _"... it's not gonna snow again."_

 _A flat look, then a simple point in the direction of the swaddled child._

 _"... fine, let's just hurry. it looks like it might get light soon."_

 _'Frisk' nodded and began piling food into the blanket, handing it to the older boy before diving back in and removing more food._

 _The skeleton looked around warily._

 _It only took about five more minutes for Frisk to pull out everything she could carry, then the human(?) turned back to the skeleton._

 _"ready to go now?"_

 _She nodded, rolling her eyes._

 _"then come on!"_

 _He marched imperiously off and she glared at his back for a moment before suddenly the shapes were back, extending from behind her and now they were twice as large... Wait..._

 _She had wings. Huge wings._

 _The girl took a running start then leapt OVER her companion, flapping frantically to get airborne with the load in her arms._

 _"see you at the cave, sis. don't be seen, please."_

 _There was no response from the silent girl, but the skeleton didn't seem to be concerned._

 _Within a few minutes Grillby couldn't see either. Quietly, he exited his hideout, then headed home. That had been interesting._

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 _"sis. we're out of food again."_

 _Rather than answer verbally, the girl known as W.D.G-3 F (or just Frisk) looked out at the mouth of the tiny little cave, then 'spoke' in a manner that was completely silent and still but easily understood by both of her skeletal companions. 'We can't go out in that, Sans.'_

 _'That' was the howling blizzard that roared just outside, loud and cold and wet and dangerous. Frisk, who was lying on the floor of the cave, one wing draped protectively over their smallest sibling, shivered and pulled him closer. They had several scraps of cloth, even a couple of pilfered blankets, but without question Sans gave most of them to Papyrus and the rest to her._

 _Sans was always doing that. Barely eating, giving Papyrus almost all of their food, then the rest to her, keeping only a few scraps for himself. She tried to argue, but he wouldn't budge. Short of force-feeding him, which she would never stoop to, Frisk knew that there was nothing she could do._

 _Sans's white pupils locked on her. "frisk, it's been almost six days. we've been out for three. i don't think the snow is gonna stop anytime soon. i can hear your stomach growling, and pap is hungry, too. please, stay with him while i get us some food?"_

 _'Sans! You'll dust yourself if you try to go out in this!'_

 _"i'll be fine." Sans had a habit of responding verbally to her silent mental speech._

 _'Saaaans! Please!'_

 _"frisk..."_

 _'Just one more day!' She begged. 'One day! Wait one day, and see if the snow stops. How will I take care of Pap without your help?'_

 _He stopped but didn't turn around._

 _'I need you. We both do! Please don't go out there... Please...' She let out a desperate-sounding whimper._

 _It was the noise that made Sans cave, it sounded so needy and broken, and came from the one who did her best to be both a good little sister and a good big sister._

 _"... fine. i'll stay. but only one more day!"_

 _'Thank you... Now come here and get warm. You don't need to do watch tonight, I don't think anything will come after us in this cold.'_

 _"alright..."_

 _The small skeleton hunched down, crawled into the small space that Papyrus and Frisk were in and settled beside Papyrus. Their cave was very small, with a fairly wide opening, that got smaller as you got deeper in. The back wall was barely big enough for the three of them to huddle together in._

 _Heck, it was smaller than their cell back at the lab._

 _"SIS? BROTHER? STORY?" The tiny child in the middle said suddenly._

 _"sure thing, pap." Sans glanced at Frisk. She was always better at starting a tale, though the pair tended to trade off lines._

 _Frisk began petting his skull absently, before opening her mouth and actually speaking. Both Sans and Papyrus listened raptly, as hearing her voice willingly was a rare treat nowadays. Frisk hated to talk, and would normally use their relatively new mental connection and over-exaggerated gestures to get her point across._

 _"Once upon a time there were three young monsters..." Her voice was sweet, and had a singsong quality to it. Sans honestly didn't know why she didn't like it. It made him feel nice to hear it._

 _"they lived with a very bad man."_

 _"And they loved each other very much." This was a story they must've told Papyrus hundreds of times, but their youngest sibling didn't seem to mind hearing it over and over again. He loved happy endings, and there weren't a lot of them available to the trio._

 _"one day the bad man got tired of hurting them, so he just left them in their room."_

 _"They had plenty to eat, and all the time in the world to play with each other, and sleep whenever they wanted..." Frisk smirked in Sans's direction, and he rolled his eyes._

 _Frisk bopped Papyrus on the nosehole and Sans said, "and they all lived happily ever after."_

 _Sans carefully picked up the little skeleton, setting Papyrus on his lap so they could snuggle up closer. The toddler clapped happily and curled into Sans's jacket._

 _Frisk chuckled. 'C'mon, let's get some sleep.'_

 _Sans nodded and the three of them curled up together. They were cold, wet, dirty, hungry, and exausted, but they couldn't help but revel in their newfound freedom. They used to think that that story for Papyrus would be the best possible outcome for them._

 _Now they had a chance to be happy._

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 _Grillby found himself incredibly worried about the three kids when the snowstorm hit. It lasted four days, and though he left food and thermoses of warm hot cocoa outside the bar every night of it, there was no sign of them._

 _So he set up another stakeout the night it ended. Sure enough, after a couple hours, the hoodie-wearing one walked up in his puppy-like form, looking back and forth uneasily, alert for any sign of a threat. When his eyes fell on the basket Grillby had left, three thermoses and warm soup in a travel bowl, plenty for three, he changed back, with Grillby watching the transformation fascinatedly, and stared._

 _Grillby very slowly moved out of the shadows, hands up and not making any threatening or sudden moves. His natural light caught the boy's eyes, and wide white pupils were suddenly locked on him._

 _"Don't be afraid, child. I won't hurt you. I just thought you might like something more sustaining than what you've been finding in my trash." Grillby said gently._

 _He was unsurprised when the boy turned and bolted. Grillby was a patient sort. He would keep trying, and hopefully the boy and his companions would grow to trust him._

 _Over the next week, he left a basket of food out every night before he left the bar. And every morning, he would come back to find it untouched, but with small footprints getting closer and closer to it as if their maker was afraid it would bite him. Eight days after his encounter, the prints actually reached the basket, but it was still untouched. For the next several days, there were marks that indicated he was pacing beside it, uncertain what to do, and it broke Grillby's heart to think that this child, these children, had to be so distrustful of a simple act of kindness._

 _It took twelve days for Grillby to come out and find the basket empty. He was overjoyed, and left a couple of blankets he'd ordered with that day's basket. They had only just arrived via post, so he wanted to get them to the kids ASAP._

 _A week or so after that, there was a tiny, hesitant knock on his back door as he was closing for the night._

 _He opened it to find a small, teary-eyed little girl who could pass for human if not for the crimson-and-gold-feathered wings currently partway extending from her back. She had the younger skeleton boy holding onto the tail of her ratty shirt, with the older one in her arms, seemingly asleep._

 _He knelt down. "Are you alright?"_

 _"PLEASE HELP..." The tiny skeleton whispered. His pronunciation was quite good for the age he appeared to be._

 _"What's wrong?"_

 _"BROTHER WON'T WAKE. BEEN OUT FOR DAYS NOW."_

 _Uh-oh. Had the child caught something in the cold?_

 _"Please, come in and I'll see what I can do."_

 _The young one pressed closer to the girl as they took trembling, uncertain steps inside, her clutching at the other child._

 _He led them to the couch, telling the girl to set the skeleton down on the cushions. She did so with clear reluctance, and then perched on the arm of the sofa, pulling the small one up to sit beside her. She then proceeded to stare at him._

 _He could feel her eyes on him as he dug out some cold medicine and blankets. "May I have your names?" He was hoping simple conversation might make them more comfortable._

 _After a moment, the small one said, "MY DESIGNATION IS WDG-2 P. MY SISTER'S DESIGNATION IS WDG-3 F. MY BROTHER'S DESIGNATION IS WDG-1 S."_

 _Grillby froze. What? That was... Not a normal method of stating your name, to say nothing of the 'names' themselves. He recovered his wits quickly, standing with the blankets he'd been getting from the cupboard and turning back to the sofa._

 _She (WDG-3 F?) was still watching him._

 _"I have some cold medicine here. It'll help your brother until I can call a doctor-"_

 _That, apparently, was the exact wrong thing to say. Those few words set off an absolute panic attack. Grillby's soul was suddenly yanked into a Fight and doused in purple magic, preventing him from moving closer. The girl's eyes and the feathers in her hair were glowing a dark purple._

 _"What's wrong? I'm not going to hurt you, child! Or your siblings!"_

 _The girl didn't respond, just sent a barrage of glowing purple feathers down the threads of violet magic, forcing him to hop from thread to thread to avoid them, and stared at him with wild eyes._

 _"I just want to help, child!"_

 _She hissed, hunched over the sick skeleton in a very feral fashion, her wings spread behind her._

 _Grillby checked his act stats. He had no desire to hurt her._

 _Hmm._

 _Check_

 _Hug_

 _Explain_

 _Take Medicine_

 _-Act_

 _-Explain_

 _*Grillby explains that he has no desire to harm them, and that a doctor will help. He says that doctors heal people for a living._

 _*The girl shakes her head._

 _Frisk eyed the fire man. Something was niggling at the back of her mind. One of those long-lost memories of her time on the surface._

 _-Act_

 _-Check_

 _*Grillby. 10 ATK, 95 HP. An honest man who owns a bar in Snowdin._

 _Frisk flung another series of feathers at him._

 _After dodging most of the barrage, Grillby hit Act again._

 _-Act_

 _-Check_

 _*WDG-3 F/Frisk. 4 ATK, 60 HP. A young child with a dark past._

 _-Act_

 _-Explain_

 _*Grillby explains a doctor's job and behavior in more depth, going so far as to describe his most recent visit._

 _*Frisk seems to calm slightly, as though remembering something._

 _-Act_

 _-Take medicine_

 _*Grillby swallows some cold medicine to prove it's safe._

 _*Frisk seems much calmer._

 _-Act_

 _-Hug_

 _*Grillby slowly walks up to Frisk, offering a hug. She warily accepts it._

 _*After a moment, Frisk bursts into tears._

 _Her name was yellow!_

 _*Frisk is Sparing Grillby._

 _Grillby hit Mercy, then Spare, and the battle screen dropped. He still had a small winged human clinging to his hip._

 _"M'sorry, so sorry..." He heard her whisper, barely audible. So she was capable of speech._

 _"It'll be okay." Grillby soothed. "You're safe here, child."_

 _She nodded into his jacket._

 _"Can you tell me what happened to you?"_

 _The girl sniffed and nodded slightly, then began to tell her tale. Once it started, a dam seemed to break, and the words came tumbling over one another. A lab, an evil Doctor, she and her brothers in pain and fear, being trained for fighting as weapons... It was all so horrible. She mentioned their escape but wouldn't say how they'd done it, and explained that they'd been living on the streets for almost two months._

 _He held her and rubbed the part of her back between her wings soothingly while she stammered out her disjointed story, and he got the distinct impression she was hiding a lot of it and skimming most. She showed him the plate drilled into her hand, as well as the ones in her brothers'. She held the smallest of them like a security blanket or a teddy bear, and he dutifully clung to her in return._

 _She told him that their 'hero' had called her brothers Sans and Papyrus, and that her name used to be Frisk._

 _Grillby asked if he could call a doctor for Sans._

 _This time, after taking a shuddering, fearful breath, Frisk agreed._


	16. When Can I See You Again

*opens a portal in my bunker and storms into Underfell.* Stupid angryish mobs, can't seem to realize that if I die this'll never get finished... *I walk past Underfell Sans, grabbing him and slinging him over my shoulder* Come on, Red. I'm stealing your couch.

Sans: Huh?!

You heard me! And if your Boss has an issue with it I'll just lock him in his own damn torture chamber.

Sans: -_- Why does this bullshit always happen to me...?

Also, readers, I'm afraid Ask the Cast is probably going to be delayed. FFN is consistently having syncing problems with their review system (This is the third time in a row now. They fix it after like five days, and get us our reviews back, and then it promptly starts again an hour later), leaving me (and everyone else on the site) unable to read their reviews outside of email. That means I am still GETTING your reviews, and definitely reading them, but in order to do ATC I'd have to sort through the billion emails I get from FFN to find the ones that actually have asks, and I just don't have the time.

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James Seraphee sighed, staring out from between the purple-and-white checked curtains at the distant sight of Mt. Ebott. Frisk had always loved this window seat...

 _"Read me a story, Jamie!"_

 _"Heh, alright, kitkat. Whaddya wanna hear?"_

 _"Uh... Oh! Oh! The Little Red Hen!" The tiny girl clapped her hands._

 _Jamie dutifully stood to pull the storybook off the shelf. By the time he turned around, his little sister was already curled up in the corner of the window seat wrapped in what seemed to be miles upon miles of blankets and pillows, holding part of them open._

 _Her elder brother laughed and wormed his way into the pile to snuggle up beside her. "There once was a little red hen who always worked very hard..." He said slowly, pointing to each word on the colorfully illustrated page. Their mother had told him to do that as he read to her, since it would help her learn to read if she could recognize words and put them together with how they sound._

 _"She had three best friends, the cat, the dog, and the rat!" Frisk cheered before he even turned the page._

 _He snickered. "Shh, Frannie, you're gonna spoil it!"_

 _She shoved him. "Dun'call me Frannie! Frisk! Frisk!"_

 _"Ahh! I surrender!" He allowed himself to flop dramatically onto the cushions. I have been defeated by a foe far mightier than I could ever be! Have mercy on this poor unfortunate soul, Lady Frisk!"_

 _"Rawr!" Frisk giggled, climbing atop him. "Imma tickle you!"_

 _"Noooooooo!" Jamie wailed. "Anything but that! If you do that, I may never finish the story!"_

 _Francine blinked, frowning. "But Red Hen hasta make her breads, so she can teach hard work to the cat, rat, and dog!"_

 _"Exactly!" Jamie laughed. Frisk shoved the book into his chest._

 _"Read Red Hen!"_

 _"Sure thing, boss!" He pulled her to his side and she cuddled under the blankets._

Jamie shivered, standing rather abruptly and moving to sit on the ornate wooden toy chest instead, wiping stray tears from his eyes.

Really, he shouldn't be in here. Bianca wanted him to stop obsessing... But how could he just stop loving the little bundle of joy that was Francine, how could he just forget her? He was fairly sure that if Bianca knew he'd been sleeping in Frisk's room recently, she'd call off their planned trip to Mt. Ebott in a heartbeat.

But when he slept in his own bedroom, he had horrible nightmares of a terrifying silhouette of a faceless man with a rictus grin standing over his little sister while she screamed and begged for mercy. It got so bad he was sure that every time he passed a shadow or dark room, the grinning man was there, looking at him with empty eyes.

Yet, when he spent the night in her room, he always had a heavy, safe-feeling dreamless sleep.

He was starting to think he was going crazy.

Jamie stood again and flopped down onto the bed, grimacing at the frilly pink blankets. Even Frisk had hated how girly her bedding was. But sheet sets were forty bucks a pop, so their Ma had demanded she use it until it needed to be replaced.

A spot of dusty yellow caught his eye and he pulled the stuffed kitten off of the bedside table to hold it.

 _"Jay! Jay jay jay!" The toddler bounced around the room, reminding her minders of a superball. "Jay n' Bia play!"_

 _Her elder brother and his girlfriend exchanged a glance. "Sweetie, it's bed time." Bianca said._

 _"No! Play!" Francine wailed. "Not tired!"_

 _Bianca looked helplessly at her boyfriend, who smirked._

 _"Hey, snickers bar, I've got something for ya!"_

 _Francine cocked her head._

 _Jamie reached into his bag and drew out a plush kitten. "This is Wyatt, and he's really tired. But he has really bad dreams when he sleeps alone. Won't you help him sleep?"_

 _"Kitty!" Francine snatched the plushie. "I p'tect Wyatt from boogeymen!" She hugged it._

 _"Yes, that's right. My brave little sister."_

Jamie sobbed into the comforter. He had to find her, she couldn't be dead...

His mother found him a few hours later, lying half-on Frisk's bed and clutching the plush kitten, asleep with dried tear streaks running down his face.

She called her husband, who moved Jamie into a more comfortable position on the bed, telling her to just let him grieve.

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"I... Had no idea..." Asgore whispered in horror.

Sans was kind of confused. Him remaining hidden and crying had changed things quite a bit.

For one, Toriel had essentially began guarding the bar, preventing the giant from coming near them. And for another, she had shouted pretty much everything she'd learned or deduced about them (she really was perceptive... She'd figured out several things they hadn't told her.) at the man, who, it seemed, had finally given in and started to believe her. Hopefully that meant he wouldn't attack Frisk, since Toriel had stressed that despite her appearance, it seemed she was as much monster as human.

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Frisk began to rise and Sans grabbed her sleeve, but she shook her head in silent rebuke, nudging his hand away and poking about half her head over the bar, her wings extended enough that the tips were visible behind her.

She gave the big fluffy man a little wave with her left hand, trying not to think about how he'd just killed her.

Asgore's jaw dropped in shock. "Tori..."

"Toriel." The goat woman snapped. "And I know. She's a dead ringer for him, isn't she?"

Frisk was confused until Chara spoke up.

/Me. They're talking about how much you look like me, Featherbutt./

'Oh.'

Asgore slowly picked his way through the tables, not making any sudden moves. He knelt down to the level Frisk was at. "Hello, young one."

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Sans heard the footsteps, then the greeting, and hoisted himself up. While Frisk was barely tall enough to poke the top part of her head over the counter, Sans was almost level with the counter and had to jump and hold himself up on trembling arms.

There was a soft ' _ting_!' and he found himself free-floating, his formerly white soul glowing a bright blue in his chest. He tuned his head to see Frisk grinning at him, her eyes glowing the same shade of dark blue.

"Integrity is useful!" His sister grinned, ignoring Asgore for the moment in favor of trying to make him feel better. He appreciated the effort. In fact, he appreciated the effort so much...

"So this is your idea of a moment of _levity_?"

Her expression instantly morphed into annoyance. "I could just drop you, you know."

"It would be worth it." Sans smirked.

Asgore brought them back to the moment with a deep belly laugh. They looked over to see him bent over laughing, with Toriel snickering into her hand in a semi-dignified manner.

"See? _They_ like my puns." Sans muttered petulantly, most of the tension draining out of him at the realization that, if Asgore were laughing, he probably wasn't going to attack them.

/ _They_ have no taste when it comes to humor./ Chara grumbled.

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Frisk smiled softly. This was going much better.

 _ ***Seeing your brother calm and content fills you with DETERMINATION.***_

She jumped, nearly dropping Sans as her magic flickered. That was the same voice as before, when she Reloaded.

/Yeah, that's gonna happen a lot. Better get used to it, kid. Until you learn how to control it, you'll be Saving all the damn time./

'that's going to get annoying.' Sans put in.

/Yup./

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Flowey wanted to bang his head on a brick wall. He really, really should've thought about what to tell these two.

" **Please, just check the bar! They're there, I swear!** "

"How do you even know what we're looking for!?" Undyne demanded. She was standing in front of Alphys, crouched and ready to attack, small white spears slowly filling the air around her.

" **I'm looking for them too!** "

"Wh-why!?" Alphys's voice shook, and Flowey wasn't sure if the stutter was because she was afraid or just a normal problem of hers.

Flowey sighed. " **... The girl. She saved my life, made me sane again. I wanted to help her, but I couldn't get her out of the lab myself.** " Just enough truth to get them to believe him, but not enough information that they would think he was involved with her ending up in the lab in the first place. The only person he planned to give full disclosure on that front was the human herself. She deserved to know how she'd ended up in the lab. " **So I left that key card on your father's desk-** " Alphys gasped. " **And the note, under the desk, hoping it would peak your curiosity. And it did! You went down to the lab, careful not to be seen, and found her! And then you saved her. Something I couldn't do, because I didn't have the resources. I couldn't short out the cameras and alarms and things, but you're a little genius!** " He was practically gushing by the end. " **You did everything perfectly! But then, they got separated from you, and so I followed them, planning to try and help, but I lost them somewhere in Waterfall...** "

"I don't understand." Undyne said, eyeing him with much less suspicion, but not dispelling the growing number of attacks gathering behind her. Flowey briefly wondered how she was sustaining so much magic at once. "Why didn't you just tell Alphys about them and ask her to help you save them?"

" **Because I had no guarantee she would believe me. And I wanted to,** _ **needed**_ **to, save the human.** " Flowey said promptly.

Undyne dropped her attacks with a sigh. "... Alright. We'll take a look."

Flowey felt nothing but a deep-seated relief. It was still so strange to actually _feel_ again, but he was slowly getting used to it. " **Erm... If you don't mind, it's actually really cold. My petals kinda feel like they're gonna freeze...** "

Undyne sighed begrudgingly and knelt down, reaching to pull him out of the snow. Before she could touch him, he snagged her wrists in a vine and used it to wind up her arm and come the rest on her shoulder. She blinked.

" **Thank you.** "

"Yeah, yeah..." The fish girl muttered as the trio headed back towards the town.

Flowey could only hope that this turned out well.

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"I will of course put out an arrest warrant for Doctor Gaster." Asgore was saying. Frisk and Sans were both keeping half an eye on him while they, and Papyrus, did the puzzle Toriel had given them on the floor in the middle of the bar.

The King, Toriel, and Grillby were all seated at a table a few feet away, discussing what was going to happen next. The only reason the pair weren't terrified was because they knew that Toriel wouldn't let Asgore take them away, and if he tried and things went wrong, Frisk could just reset.

"Found the last corner." Frisk mumbled, pulling a piece out of the pile and setting it to the side. These picture puzzles were an odd thing. They'd done puzzles like this at the lab, been timed on how fast they could get them done, been forced to race to see which of them could solve it first, with the loser being punished, but those puzzles were white. Just plastic pieces all shaped like these flimsy little cardboard ones with no pictures. Just a blank slate.

Frisk liked the pictures. According to the box of this one, it was a small fuzzy creature with pointy ears and big eyes. It reminded her in its basic shape of the Blasters. Toriel had called it a kitten, and she found that its yellow-gray fur made her feel nostalgic. Like she could feel the ghost of something warm and soft in her arms.

She wanted to cuddle something, honestly. Maybe Sans would sit on her lap?

No sooner had she thought this than Sans shifted and settled into her crossed legs, cooing out a rumbling purr. Papyrus giggled.

It wasn't quite right. Sans wasn't soft, he was all joints and bones and sharp edges, and he wasn't warm, only about room temperature, but she still ran a hand along his skull, humming softly and feeling content. Her brother used his tail to move a puzzle piece, and she reached past to connect it to the corner she'd found.

"And you can continue to care for them, of course, Toriel, but I'd still like them to have a full medical check-up. You're a good healer, but an actual doctor..." Asgore's voice faded into the background again. Frisk and Sans exchanged a worried glance.

/It'll be fine. I keep trying to tell you, Gaster was a freaking psycho./ Chara muttered. /Normal doctors don't do crazy experiments on innocent kids. Or even on not innocent kids. They don't do crazy experiments, period. On kids, or adults./

'… okay.' Sans said, tail going almost automatically towards his mouth. He started to chew on the tip, a nervous habit he couldn't seem to break. Frisk tugged it from between his jaws, rolling her eyes.

"I'd also like them to speak to some of the Royal Guard about what happened to them so we can use their testimony in court without them having to get in front of a huge roomful of monsters... Perhaps Dogamy and Dogeressa?"

Any reply Toriel may have had was cut off by a knock on the door, which caused everyone in the room to look over to it.

"We're closed." Grillby called.

"Please s-sir..." A very familiar, very nervous voice came from the other side of the doorway. "I-, we-we're looking f-for Frisk. A-and Sans! An-nd P-Papyrus!"

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Toriel stiffened, getting ready to defend her children if need be, when Sans suddenly leapt from Frisk's lap and bounded across the room, showing more enthusiasm for moving than she'd yet seen. Papyrus followed his lead and shifted instantly, stumbling after his brother. As Frisk bolted towards the door herself, the boss monster made a mental note to make certain that Sans and Frisk stopped carrying the toddler everywhere, as he clearly needed more practice walking in both forms.

With no hesitation, Frisk yanked the heavy wooden door to the bar open and reached out into the snow to yank a little lizard girl in a pink dress into the room. With a cry of "Allie!" She hugged the startled monster for all she was worth, shocking Toriel with her eager display of happiness and emotion, and the completely unreserved physical contact the likes of which the goat woman had only seen her give to Sans and Papyrus.

Sans shifted form and picked up Papyrus, joining the hug without a second thought.

'Allie' giggled softly as a young, blue fish girl with red hair tied in a loose braid entered the room. The was, oddly enough, a yellow flower with a face riding on the fish girl's shoulder.

"I'm so glad you're o-okay!" 'Allie' smiled. "I was so s-scared that something had h-happened to you a-after we got sp-plit up..."

"... My children?" Toriel called, reminding the trio where they were. "Who is this?"


	17. Problem

*I am sitting on the couch in the Underfell Skelebros' house, Sans sitting next to me. I am typing this chapter. In the background, swearing and death threats can be heard as Underfell's Papyrus bangs on the basement door in an attempt to free himself from his own torture chamber. Unfortunately for him, he has set it up so that it is nearly impossible for even him to escape. Sans is flinching with every bang, but I am ignoring it.*

Sans: So... When are you leaving?

*eye roll* Certainly not after this chapter. *shows it to Sans*

Sans: *looks over it and lets out a low whistle* Those readers are gonna have your head, kid.

*nods* I'll make you a deal?

Sans: *suspiciously* What?

You protect me from the rabid angry readers, and I'll take you with me when I do leave. Then 'Boss' can't beat the shit out of you for not killing me and not letting him out of the basement.

Sans: … Deal.

Yay! *hugs him*

Sans: *blue screen of death*

*frowns* We're gonna have to work on getting you used to positive physical contact...

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Alphys squeaked as she stared at the goat woman. She knew who she was, of course, even if Queen Toriel hadn't been seen in public in years. And there was King Asgore again, both of them looking expectantly at her and her friends.

Frisk had stiffened slightly in her arms, but then seemed to relax and, with a glance at Sans, turned to face the Queen of the Underground. "This is Alphys, Miss Toriel." She said quietly, but firmly, standing her ground. Determination shined in her eyes.

Alphys couldn't help but compare her to some of the human anime she'd seen. And honestly? Right now, her friend looked like she could just be plonked into a number of anime worlds and fit right in.

"She's the one who saved us."

Both the King and Queen were staring at her now. Alphys blushed and dropped her gaze to the floor.

King Asgore seemed to come to a decision.

"Grillby, may I impose upon you for lunch for all of these lovely children? I will, of course, pay for it. And I would appreciate the use of your phone."

"Of course, Sire." The fire man said calmly, leaving the room through a door in the back wall.

"I can see that there is a lot that needs discussed, young ladies." The King continued, looking from Frisk to Alphys to Undyne. "And I believe we should follow the appropriate channels to do so."

"You're going to call in the Royal Guard?" Queen Toriel demanded. She looked like she'd eaten something particularly sour when she eyed the King.

"If we do this properly from the start, then Doctor Gaster will not have the ability to claim bias."

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Sans tilted his head in confusion, but didn't say anything. Toriel didn't exactly seem adverse to the idea, it only looked like her distaste was for Asgore himself.

Sans could understand that. He definitely didn't like Asgore. Even if Frisk had 'come back', he'd still killed her.

Just the thought made his metaphorical hackles rise, made him want to grab Frisk and Paps and Alphys and run back to the safe, warm place behind the purple door, Where Toriel would keep them safe and hidden and he could protect his little family and their only friend.

The soothing heat and softness of Frisk's fingers curled around his phalanges and he relaxed minutely, almost unwillingly. He felt a little better. But there was still no way he'd ever trust or like the King.

And that made him wonder what was going to happen next. Toriel had said the Royal Guard enforced the laws, right? What if they decided that he or Frisk broke the law when they had run away from the Doctor, or when they killed those little monsters and animals the Doctor had put in front of them, demanding they kill the creatures or face punishment-

/It'll be okay, kid./ Chara cut off the beginning of his panic attack.

Sans jumped slightly at the voice. Chara's usually-mocking drawl had been replaced with a calm, level tone, much like Toriel's. It was soothing, like the squeeze Frisk gave to his phalanges after the voice in her head spoke.

/Things'll work out, I promise, Sans. It might take a while. It might be hard in the interim. But in the end, everything will turn out the way it's supposed to./

Papyrus, still in his blaster form, nuzzled his cheek.

'NO MORE SADS PLEASE BROTHER? CARE RIGHT.'

/Papyrus, it's Cha-are-a. Not K-air-a. And certainly not 'Care'./ The mental voice sounded slightly irritated.

'CARE!'

/... Whatever. Anyway, Sans. Things'll work out. You'll see./

'they sure worked out for you. considering you're dead and trapped in frisk's head and all.'

There was the numb sensation of indifference. /Maybe being tour guide for you numbskulls _is_ my destiny./

Sans snorted softly, earning a slightly confused look from the fish girl who Alphys had brought. If Sans remembered their friend's stories about her life, the other's name was Undyne, Alphys's other friend. 'heh. numbskulls.'

/GOD DAMMIT, THAT WASN'T INTENTIONAL!/

'Will you two shut up!? I can't hear myself think over your 'wit'.'

'eh... sorry, sis.'

Chara simply went quiet again.

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The fire man returned with the phone, which King Asgore thanked him for. Grillby then left, presumably to rustle up some lunch as he'd been previously asked to.

"Girls," the King said, "I would like you to call whomever are your guardians and ask them to come here. I need you to give official statements to the Royal Guard members I will be calling here after you eat, and that cannot be legally done without a parent or guardian present for all of you, because you are minors."

Undyne nodded and took the phone. Alphys had no doubt her friend was going to call her aunt. Scylla Ambrose was second-in-command of the Royal Guard, so even if Undyne didn't really have anything to contribute, seeing as she'd only just joined the situation, it meant that she still would _feel_ like she was helping by making sure that somebody who would be on Undyne's side (And by extension, Alphys's, Sans's, Frisk's, and Papyrus's) no matter what happened or who else was present.

Alphys mentally debated whether she should call her father at work or try to contact her mother at home. Titania didn't actually own a cell phone- Her mother preferred the old-fashioned ways of most things, tending to sew by hand, cook with fire magic, and actually track other monsters down and have a conversation with them rather than trying to call them up and have an 'impersonal, robotic discussion'. But her father was very busy with his work at the labs, and when Alphys had originally tried to tell him about the children in the secret lab beneath their very feet, he'd brushed her off as just telling him another anime-inspired childhood fantasy.

In the end, when Undyne handed her the cell phone, she decided on her father for that very reason. He'd be able to back her up on the fact that she _had_ told him, even if he hadn't believed her at the time. He'd have to believe her now. And maybe next time she told him there was an alien in her closet, he might take her seriously and actually check, rather than leave her to stand outside the closet door with a thick manga book all night, just waiting for it to come out and try to eat her in the dark.

Before she actually called him, though, she looked up at the King. "Daddy won't g-get in t-trouble for missing w-work, right?"

"Of course not, young one. I will make the arrangements."

Alphys dialed the phone number.

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Oberon Novan prided himself on several things. His own accomplishments in the field of robotics and computer science, his wonderful wife Titania, and his lovely, if shy, daughter Alphys. While Titania had very little patience for his job and the inner workings of science, Alphys seemed to have inherited his sharp mind and the natural talents that would serve her well if she followed him into this wonderful, rewarding profession. It was why he often brought her along with him to work, so she could see how the Royal labs operated and get hands on experience at a profession he was hoping she would love.

The ringing of his cell phone brought him out of his musings. He checked the id, but it was a number he didn't recognize. With some trepidation, he hit the green button.

"Daddy?"

"Alphys?" Why was Alphys calling from a phone besides her own? Why was she calling at all, wasn't she supposed to be going out exploring with her little friend Undyne? "Is something wrong, sweetie?"

There was a pause, and Obreon could practically feel the tension in the air wherever she was. "... Nothing's wrong with _me_ , Daddy. But I need you to leave work and come to the little bar called Grillby's in Snowdin. The Royal Guard need to take a statement from me, and the King says they can't without one of my parents present."

Her father's soul dropped like a stone in his chest. "Sweetie, what happened?!" He demanded.

"It's too much to explain over the phone, Daddy." Alphys said, more firmly than he was expecting from his painfully shy daughter. Obreon heard some indistinct voices on the other end of the line. "King Asgore wants to talk to you, Daddy."

The King? The King was there, dealing with whatever Alphys had gotten mixed up in? Oh, stars, what the heck had happened?! Alphys's assurances that she was fine were the only thing keeping him from devolving into full-blown panicking father mode. "A-alright, sweetums."

A deep, soothing voice came on the line. "Oberon Novan?"

"Yes, Your Highness." Obreon said, far calmer than he was currently feeling.

"I just wished to inform you that neither your daughter or her friend are in any kind of trouble. They did witness a horrific crime, and I only want to get to the bottom of what happened. You will, of course, be compensated for having to leave your place of work, and if you give me the proper information, I will smooth things over with your boss afterwards."

He nodded, then realized he was on the phone and said, "Of course, Sire."

"I shall see you soon, then, Mr. Novan."

The phone clicked and Alphys's father placed his head in both hands, resting his elbows on the desk and rubbing his temples.

What the hell had had happened to Alphys?

After a moment, he stood. He needed to let his boss know that he was leaving.

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Doctor Gaster was irritated. He needed to be in his private lab right now, working on the machine to track the missing experiments. Instead, he was stuck up here in his office, filing paperwork, and he couldn't leave unless he wished to arouse suspicion in his coworkers and underlings.

Speaking of coworkers, Gaster's secretary's voice buzzed over the intercom. "Doctor Gaster, Doctor Novan here to see you?"

Doctor Novan, Novan... Right. He worked in Robotics and Computers. He had a little daughter that had a habit of-

Of getting into places that were far too restricted for her to bypass the security. He vividly remembered the girl- Allison?- being found in the room that housed the CORE one day, snapping pictures of it with her cell phone and positively _gushing_ over all the intricate parts, being able to name each one and their function. It had impressed him, as at the time she was barely five. And if he remembered correctly, she'd somehow successfully hacked the security system that protected the room from little girls wandering around (among other things, of course.) using only her cell phone.

His mind was quickly putting two and two together, and he wasn't liking what he was coming up with.

"Sir?" The secretary's voice pressed.

"Right, sorry. Lost in thought. Send him in, Sara."

There was a click, and a large yellow dinosaur monster in a lab coat entered. "Doctor Gaster." He greeted with a nod.

Gaster smiled warmly at him. "And what can I do for you?"

"I just got a call from my daughter, Alphys." Oberon began. "Apparently she witnessed a crime, and the Royal Guard needs me there so they can take her statement. The King seems to be involved, as well... I'm afraid I have to leave."

Gaster nodded, mind whirling with the new information. "Of course, you're welcome to go." He paused, mostly to decide how he wanted to pry the needed information from the other monster. If his epiphany was correct, he may well have just located the person who'd help his projects escape. Quickly going through everything he knew about Obreon Nova and his daughter, he came up with an idea. "By the way, how is your daughter? Is she still prone to falling into her overactive imagination? I know you and Rozzie used to have a good laugh about her stories around the water cooler before her untimely fall..." He allowed his voice the drop at the last words, feeling genuine remorse for the loss of his former assistant. At least her death hadn't been in vain, as now WDG-3 F was making good use of her soul.

Oreon also looked down. "Yes." From what Gaster knew, Oberon had actually been quite close to Roslyn. He was fairly certain she'd been carrying a torch for him, actually, a sad thing seeing as he was happily married, bonded, and mated. The other monster looked back up, a little smile gracing his face. "Allie's still telling her tall tales to anyone who will listen. Actually, Just the other day she was going on about tortured skeleton children and a hybrid of a human and monster in some top secret lab beneath this one." He laughed. "Absurd, right? Though, she's been unusually persistent about this story... Normally, she comes up with a new one after a week or so, but she's been going on about this one for almost a month."

Gaster nodded slowly, panic filling his bones. "Indeed. Well, Doctor, you'd best get going if the King is waiting on you."

"Right, thank you, sir." Oberon scrambled out of the room, and Gaster gathered his papers into a pile and shoved them into his briefcase.

Pressing the intercom button, the scientist took a deep breath. "Sara, cancel all of my appointments for the day. I'm suddenly feeling a bit unwell."

"Sure thing, sir!" Sara chirped.

Gaster walked quickly from the room and into the hall, acting natural. He had no doubt that, within the day, there would be Royal Guards crawling all over the lab, searching for him.

He quickly stepped into the elevator, pressing his key card into the correct slot.

He would gather what he needed, and only what he needed, and leave. He had several secret labs across the Underground that he could hide in while he continued to work on a way to track down his wayward experiments. He could also begin anew his research into cracking the Barrier.

If he managed that, there was no way they would convict him on any trumped-up charges the King could manufacture over the 'tortured children' he'd created.

After gathering his notes and concept sketches for the repairs, and the remains of the tracking machine, he vanished in a swirl of teleportation magic, leaving behind an empty lab still filled with records of years of pain and abuse, and the echoes of the misery of three innocents.

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Hey, guys. I know you're probably mad at me for what just happened, but I want to remind you all to check out the Counting Stars tumblr, (countingstarsundertale) that was linked in an earlier chapter. I've gotten several awesome pieces of Fanart for this story, and I've shared it all on the tumblr. You can also find updates on how things are going, more of my crummy MSPaint drawings, and some other odds and ends.

*blows kisses* I'll see you for the next update, darlings! *hides behind Underfell Sans*


	18. Follow Me

*In Underfell, Sans and the Author are leaning against the door, desperately trying to hold it shut with their weight.*

Sans: this isn't working, kid!

*nods* They're going to break down the door any second!

*'They' refers to the steadily growing angryish mob outside*

Sans: please tell me you have something to pacify them!

*thinks for a minute* Be right back. *runs into the other room*

Sans: _don't just leave me here! you said there were fangirls in this goddam mob! you can't just abandon me to the hordes!_

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Grillby led the group of children into the back of the bar, sitting the quintet on the sofa in his living room and retreating into the kitchen to gather their meals.

Frisk, Sans, Papyrus, Alphys, and Undyne. He committed each name and face to memory, allowed everything he currently knew about the five of them to latch onto those names and faces. Having an eidetic memory was bad for war flashbacks, but quite useful when it came to running a bar or meeting new, interesting children. And he had a gut feeling (so far as he actually _had_ guts, being made of fire and all) that he would be seeing a _lot_ of these five in the not-too-distant future.

That was fine. They all seemed like nice kids.

"Here you are." He set each plate in front of the child it had been made for. Extra calcium supplements for the boys and for Alphys, some of Snowdrake Senior's special blend of seed added to Frisk's for her feathers, and some of Scylla's favorites for Undyne.

The fish girl and the young lizard both thanked him and dug in, but Sans just eyed the food warily. Frisk didn't even look at it, just mumbled a monotone "Thank you, sir." and pulled Papyrus away from the meal.

Grillby did his best not to show his offense. He shouldn't have expected them to trust anything they were given. If half the things Toriel had said about them were true, they had every reason to be distrustful. He simply nodded and left the room, leaving the door slightly cracked long enough to set up a simple bit of Cunning magic on the threshold. The eavesdropping spell would simultaneously allow him to keep an ear out for any trouble they may have without having them feel like he was crowding them, and it would allow he, Toriel, and Asgore to learn a bit about how the mystery trio acted around Alphys.

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The moment the fire elemental was gone, Frisk hisssed at her plate and pushed it away distrustfully. That fire man set her on edge. There was something distinctly... _dangerous_... about him. The kind of _presence_ that she and Sans had, but without the knowledge that the dark shadow looming over their souls would never, ever be directed at each other. Sans did the same, and the pair made sure to keep a tight hold on Papyrus so he wouldn't just go straight for the food, like he tended to.

Alphys seemed to sense the tension, because she immediately stopped eating to give them a shaky smile and pushed her food away. Frisk felt a lot better at the sight. She knew that some of the food may have been safe to consume, but there was always a chance that only certain parts were tampered with, so even if their friend _seemed_ fine after eating some of it, she could still be in danger.

It had been one of the Doctor's many ways to drug them when they were being uncooperative.

"Ngah..." The fish looked up from her own half-eaten foodto regard them with what Frisk thought was confusion. Probably. She wasn't exactly an expert on facial expressions. She'd had regular contact with three people over the time she could properly remember, and considering all of them were _skeletons_ , that didn't really help nurture her people-reading skills. "Why aren't you guys eating?" _That_ , though, that was definitely confusion in her tone. "It's good."

It certainly _smelled_ good, but Frisk had though the same of the determination serum, and _that_ was definitely not something she wanted in her body.

"not safe." Sans grunted. He didn't so much as look at the fish, instead focusing on keeping a hold of his increasingly squirmy younger sibling.

"BROTHER DOWN! HUNGRY!"

"No, Paps. Later." Frisk scolded softly, still monotonous, and the toddler stilled instantly, though he let out a tiny, frustrated whine. Obedience had been drilled into all of them, and while they had all had days where they misbehaved or fooled around as young children are wont to do, in the end they would always end up doing as they were told. Be it willingly or not. And his elder siblings always knew when Payrus was about to cross the line and get into trouble. So when Sans or Frisk told Papyrus to do something, the toddler knew better than to disagree. Before he'd learned that crucial lesson, there had been many punishments and a lot of pain.

Alphys gave a little chuckle and reached around Frisk, holding her arms out. Sans immediately relinquished him, and Papyrus happily forgot about the food in front of them and settled into her lap. "PLAY PATS-CAKE!" The small skeleton yelled, holding his hands out palm-first, fully expecting the elder to comply with his wishes.

Alphys duly began the hand-clapping game with the baby. "Patty-cake, patty-cake." She sing-songed, grinning as the toddler matched her movements perfectly.

"BAKER MAN! BAKE CAKE FAST AS CAN!" Though it was disjointed, Frisk couldn't help a little smile at her youngest sibling's exuberant recitation of the rhyme. It was adorable.

Alphys seemed to agree, because she giggled softly, continuing, "Pat it, and shape it, and mark it with a 'p'!"

"IN OVEN!"

"For Papy and me!"

"PATS-CAKE, PATS-CAKE! BAKER MAN!"

"Bake me a cake as fast as you can!" Their clapping was getting more complicated, but Papyrus's accuracy never faded. If Frisk didn't know why Paps was so good at remembering patterns, she might have been impressed. As it was, it only made her sad.

"ROLL UP, ROLL UP! THROW IN PAN!"

"Patty-cake, patty-cake, baker's man!" The pair finished off their game with a complex series of hand smacking that sounded a lot like the noise that had been made the time she'd tripped carrying a box full of the Doctor's tools, spilling them across the tiled floor.

The thought made her shudder. Sans set a bony hand on her shoulder and pulled her close.

"So, I don't think I've had a chance to properly introduce my other friend to you guys? This is Undyne. I know I told you a lot about her."

Frisk tilted her head, regarding the other for a moment. Alphys had indeed gone on and on about Undyne during their late-night talks, where Alphys would regale them with stories about the world outside the lab.

"I am WDG-3 F." She said after a long moment, eyeing Undyne. "Or Frisk. It is... nice to meet you? I think that's what you say?" She tugged self-consciously at one of the feathers on her wrist. While Undyne stared at her with an expression that reminded Frisk of when the Doctor had first seen her do magic, she wondered why she hadn't introduced herself as just Frisk. It was her real name, from before her memories had been damaged, after all. Yet... In the lab she had been happy to be just 'F', right? Because _Before Alphys_ , Sans and Papyrus had just been 'S' and 'P' to her. It hadn't seemed fair to her that she had a longer name and they didn't. And nothing she could come up with felt _right_ in the way of names, until Alphys had pulled up that list of fonts and began reading it off. Sans Serif. Comic Sans. Papyrus. They'd just clicked, and since that first night, S had been Sans, and P had been Papyrus, and she had finally felt free to be Frisk again.

And yet...

None of that explained why she'd felt the need to introduce herself with the name that the Doctor had given her. She'd introduced herself to Toriel as just Frisk, right?

Sans introduced himself and Papyrus in much the same manner as she had, and it clicked.

She _hadn't_ introduced herself to Toriel at all. Toriel had picked up their names from the conversations she and Sans had had with each other. And, now that she thought about it, it had felt... odd... to be addressed exclusively as Frisk over the last few days. After all, Frisk used to be a name exclusively for the dark of the night and the safety of her mind and her soul bond, with only Alphys and her brothers using it. It was supposed to be a secret. It was their small way of rebelling against the idea that they were objects, just tools for study and battle. It was a way to prove to themselves that not only were they real monsters (or in Frisk's case, weird not-quite-human-not-quite-monsters), real _people_ , but they _**deserved**_ to be treated as such. No matter the barcodes on their collarbones or the plates on their hands.

And yet, WDG-3 F was as much a part of her, if not more so, than 'Frisk'. She had comparatively few memories of being 'Frisk the Freaky Hybrid' and almost none of being 'Frisk the Human'. Most of her memories were of being 'F-3 the Weapon and Experiment'. And so was it really any wonder that she still identified herself as such?

She was so caught up in her thoughts about naming that Sans had to nudge her to get her attention.

'as interesting at your thoughts on the nature of naming are, undyne was talking.'

She shook her head quickly to clear it. "What did you say?"

Undyne stared at her with an expression she didn't recognize, but Chara pegged it as annoyance and took a second to relay that fact before retreating into the back of her mind to continue... whatever it was he was doing?

"I was saying," She held up her arm to reveal a flower with a face. Did flowers usually have faces? The echo flowers had lacked faces... Perhaps only yellow flowers had faces? But, no. That couldn't be right. Toriel had some yellow flowers in a cup-like-thing in the hallway. Huh. Maybe it was just this yellow flower that had a face. "This is Flowey."

"Howdy, Frisk!" It said cheerfully, a big, pleasant smile on its inexplicable face. Why did a flower need teeth, anyway? Did flowers eat food like they did? She distinctly remembered some yellow flowers under special lights in the lab. Hadn't the doctor said flowers ate the light?

The flower seemed to be waiting for a response, so Frisk thought about what it had said.

Unfortunately, she didn't really understand what it had meant.

Howdy? Um. Was that like hello? She hoped Chara would explain, but he seemed to have well and truly vanished.

Thankfully, Alphys was _also_ aware of how woefully unprepared for the real world Frisk and her siblings were. "H-howdy means 'h-hello', Frisk."

Oh, okay. So she was right. "Hello, Flowey." There was something... odd... about the flower. Something besides the fact that she had concluded that flowers probably didn't usually have faces, and even if they did, they probably wouldn't have needed teeth. Something that made her want to reach out and hold it close to her own beating soul.

Odd, that. She normally didn't like to so much as look at her soul, and that was before its recent impalation upon a trident. Right now, she had no intention of exposing her soul to danger for anything short of a life-or-death situation, so there was no logical reason for her sudden desire to hug this strange plant right up against it.

"Flowey said you saved his life and 'made him sane again'?"

Well, now Frisk was _really_ confused. And slightly annoyed. "I've never seen this flower before." She snapped. "At least not that I can remember."

The fact that she could very well have seen it before crossed her mind. There were, after all, almost five full years of her life left unaccounted for in her broken memories.

"... Frisk..." The flower seemed nervous, far more nervous than a plant had any real right to be. It annoyed Frisk for reasons she couldn't really place. "You gave me part of your soul."

" _What_." The child said flatly.

Sans stared in disbelief at the little plant. Alphys gasped. Undyne nearly dropped Flowey entirely.

And from the front of the bar, they all heard several curses and shouts of surprise and disbelief.

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*returns* Okay, so I figured out how to pacify the mob AND keep the fangirls busy!

Sans: *visibly exhausted and straining to keep the door shut with magic* how?!

*Throws open the door* Hey, everyone! There's a Papyrus pinata in the living room! Feel free to beat the shit out of the abusive asshole that is Boss, alright? Also, don't forget to check out the tumblr which was linked earlier in the fic (Chapter 12, to be specific)! I've been getting so REALLY cool fanart and I've written some extra stuff!*grabs Sans and dives into Underswap*


	19. Thanks for the Memories

*Underfell Sans and I are standing behind the curtain on a stage in Underswap*

Red: i can't believe that _this_ is your big plan!

Relax, will you? It'll be fine. I know what I'm doing, Sans.

Red: that's what you said when you hung my brother up in our living room and told people he was a pinata!

And that worked quite well, actually...

Red: -_- point.

*steps on stage to face the disorganized, mostly pacified mob* Hello!

Mob: Hi!

I just wanted to tell you guys to _stop chasing, harassing, or otherwise trying to kill me_. I have things I need to get done! I can't get anything done ever with an angryish mob chasing me! I'm sorry I killed Frisk! And then brought her back! And then let Gaster escape! But this is getting ridiculous. *throws hands in the air* The other day I found an assassin in my closet! I am so done with this! *sweeps offstage*

Red: *gaping at me* seriously?!

Seriously. I will no longer acknowledge the angry mob. *nods resolutely*

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Sans couldn't decide who to glare at, the crazy flower or the obviously eavesdropping adults. Despite not knowing who to be angrier at, he did know that he didn't want to be here anymore. He could feel Frisk's confusion, her distress. She didn't remember this flower. But she also felt a strange kinship to it.

It claimed to have the missing pieces of her soul. The ones that none of the three of them- Sans, the Doctor, and Frisk herself- had managed to think up an explanation for.

As annoying as it was to realize that the adults were listening in, the little yellow flower seemed to be the better choice, so he turned his eyelightless stare onto the plant.

It squeaked, and Sans felt strangely amused.

/This flower.../

'hmm?'

/Nothing... It just seems... Never mind.../

"You better explain what you mean, this instant!" Frisk growled.

There was a soft, familiar _ting_ , and several small shreds of red magic appeared, floating in front of it.

Sans knew his sister's soul well enough to recognize that they were all the precise size and shape of the white sections of her soul.

He watched her hand extend, her arm reaching out but her expression blank, her eyes unfocused.

Before Sans could think to stop her, Frisk touched one of the little balls of magic.

And everything fell into place.

The feedback from their bond, normally calming and soothing and reassuring, suddenly became violent as _toomuchinformation_ shot through Frisk's end of the bond. Colors, sounds, emotions, thoughts, names, faces... all of it came _rushingin_ at once and it was too much, too much, toomuchtoomuchtoomuch _toomuch_!

Sans could hear screaming. His head felt like it was splitting in two. He could feel his phlanges digging into the sides of his skull, leaving deep scratches, marrow leaking from the cuts and running down his hands and cheekbones. And the screaming seemed to be threefold, no, _four_ fold, but the screams weren't just on the outside of his head but _alsotheinside_ and please, please make it stop makeitstopmakeit _stop_! He felt lost, adrift in the pain and the bond- he couldn't feel himself anymore it was just _them_ and oh stars it hurt so much- i'm sorry It's okay WHY I'm/Help me it hurts/ I need it to STOP PLEASE no more Stars no more /pl/eaASe Ma/ke/ it STop!

TheywereinsomuchPAIN... _**Overwhelmed**_.

Magic lashed out. Directionless. Formless. _They_ were not sure who it belonged to.

Darkness.

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Toriel couldn't teleport, but when her three children started screaming in agony in precise unison, she came pretty damn close. Fireballs at the ready, she burst into the back room only to be confronted with three panicking children (did the flower count as a child? It was definitely panicking, and apparently it had some of her child's soul, it even still had the red bits of magic floating in front of it. She was going to go with yes, the flower counted as a child, until she was proven incorrect), and three children clutching at their heads and shrieking to high heaven.

Then, barely thirty seconds after the screaming started, all three of them slumped forward, the noise cutting off abruptly as if they were toys that had simply been shut off. Toriel rushed to Sans, who had bone marrow dripping down the sides of his skull, and healed the cuts as quickly as she could. Her previous examination of him had revealed his single hit point, and so she knew better than to take chances.

"What happened?!" Asgore demanded. She could feel him trying to push through the walls she'd put up, instinctively trying to read her thoughts on the situation. Toriel shook her head, strengthening her mental barriers as best she could. This was why she'd moved so far away.

Just because she was irreversibly bonded with him didn't mean she wanted him in her mind anymore. And the distance helped tremendously in keeping him out.

So, no matter how much her shaken nerves cried out for the comfort they knew he could give, _would_ give if she only let him in, she wouldn't.

Instead, she thought of patient little Dani, who'd stayed in the Ruins only to fall prey anyway because Toriel had foolishly left the Ruins door unlocked. She thought of rough-and-tumble Jack, who met the exit to the Ruins without an ounce of fear. And sweet, tomboyish Dakota, who was so certain she could right the wrongs committed by both humanity and monster kind. Jordan, who happily offered everyone he met the fruits of his labor, handing out cookies and treats like confetti, adoring the way people's faces would light up. And darling Oddette, who had a style all her own and made certain everybody knew it.

Her children, dead, at the hands of this man.

She would not let him in. Not _ever_. No matter how much her soul cried out for him.

"Queen Toriel, I dunno what happened!" Undyne shouted.

" **She just reached out to touch the part of her soul I have a-and... They started screaming!** "

"And then they collapsed!" Undyne finished. " _BAM_! Just like that!"

"Okay, okay." Toriel tried for a soothing tone, but she was pretty sure her voice shook like a leaf anyway. "Calm down, alright? I need you to move away from them-"

"I think I know what h-happened, Your Highness." Alphys said softly, not looking away from the unconscious hybrid. "Frisk touched those... soul p-pieces... and suffered magical overload b-because, if they really were originally part of her own, her soul would've tried to a-assimilate them and become whole again. But because she has a whole soul if you include the m-monster soul parts grafted onto hers, she couldn't absorb _more, and so_ there was a backlash."

"That doesn't explain why the boys collapsed, as well." Asgore said gruffly.

"Oh, I-I know exactly why that h-happened. B-but it's not my p-place to tell."

Toriel nodded. "I am aware, as well. I believe we should simply let them sleep it off for a while. If they do not wake on their own soon, I will call a doctor."

Grillby entered the room, knocking on the door frame to get the attention of the occupants.

"Yes, dear?" Toriel asked, turning.

"Our guests are here."

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"Wake up, you idiots!"

Well, there were better ways to come back to awareness. But Frisk supposed this was the one she'd gotten, so she better make the best of it. The hybrid sat up, rubbing her eyes and stretching her wings. Sans groaned beside her, pushing himself into a sitting position. Papyrus, who was sprawled across Frisk's legs, whined and snuggled closer, falling back to sleep.

Frisk opened her eyes, and then yelped as she realized Chara was literally an inch away from her face. She toppled back onto the grass.

 _Wait_.

Grass? There was so much wrong with this- Since when did she know what grass was, and where in the Underground would there be grass like this, neatly trimmed like a lawn (how did she know what a lawn was?)?

And why was Chara here?

Why was her head pounding so much...?

"Welcome back to your mindscape, idiot." Chara drawled. "Congrats. You almost destroyed your soul."

"Say what now?" Frisk demanded, pushing herself up into a sitting position.

"Did it ever occur to you that maybe you shouldn't touch the damaged pieces of a soul?! Even if it might have been yours at one point, you _have_ a whole soul!

"You could've _destroyed_ yourself, you lucky fucking moron! Fuck!" Chara threw his hands in the air and stomped a few feet away, pacing on the grass that definitely hadn't been here the last time Frisk had.

A look around showed quite a few things that weren't here the last time. There were patches of brightly colored wildflowers (Daises in every color of the rainbow, certainly not natural, and she _shouldn't know that_ ) dotted along the seemingly endless expanse of grass. A statue of an angel girl with an upturned face... cobble stone pathways lined with fairy lights, a winding river... Though the sky was still a black void, there were strange balls of softly-glowing-light scattered along the grass like easter eggs (seriously, where were all of these things coming from? Why did she _know_ what these things were when just a few minutes ago- She hadn't. She was sure of it.).

"what is this place?"

"I just said it was Frisk's mindscape! You're supposed to be the smart one, Sans! Pay attention!" Chara ranted, throwing his hands in the air as he paced.

"okaaaay... and so what does that mean, exactly? and, wait... you're chara?"

Chara shrieked in frustration. " _YES._ I am Chara! And _you_ are an idiot! Not as bad as _her_ , but still a moron!"

"Can you stop insulting us long enough to, oh, I don't know, _fucking explain what you mean_!?" Frisk snarlked, rubbing her temples. Stars, Chara was so infuriating sometimes...

Sans glanced over at her, and she could feel his confusion. She understood... She felt different. Less timid. Calmer, less like she would freak over the smallest things... She actually felt confident. He could probably feel it, too, and it worried him, she could tell.

The technically-dead human bent down and lifted one of the little orbs of light out of the grass. "Do you have any idea how lucky you are? Not only did you somehow survive overloading your soul with your mind, body, and magic intact, but you also managed to assimilate your goddamn memories. The odds of that are astronomical... But you fucking pulled it off."

Well... that would explain her sudden jump in understanding the world around her, wouldn't it?

"Okay... So, aside from my apparent general stupidity – because I think we've talked about _that_ quite enough at this point – what does that mean for me?" Frisk asked.

"Well..." Chara took a deep, calming breath. "I'd say we need to sort through these." He held up the ball of light. "Manually. I don't think any of the three of you can wake up until we've put your memories where they belong."

"so that ball is one of her memories?"

Chara nodded.

"well, do you know where it goes?"

The human looked around. "Well... Based on the fact that it seems to be night here, I'd say that Frisk keeps her memories as stars."

"... Seriously?"

"It would make sense. Considering the memories of the stars stuck with you even after your soul was torn apart, they obviously must be important to you." Chara held up the ball again, and the sound of a little girl's laughter filled the air.

" _Jamie! What's that one?"_

" _It's Orion, the hunter."_

" _Oh... So those three stars, they're his belt?"_

" _Yes..."_

" _What do you think the stars are, Jamie?"_

" _Well, stars are big balls of gas and fire literally farther away from our planet than it's possible for our minds to comprehend."_

 _A giggle. "That's silly, Jamie. Stars are wishes and memories! The hopes and dreams of everyone, everywhere, from all the way back to before there were people."_

 _There was a long pause._

" _You know what, Francine?I like your explanation better."_

The sound faded, and as it did, the orb shot out of Chara's hands and into the sky, coming to a stop far above them.

Frisk took a shaky breath. Who... who was that...? There had been a feeling of safety and warmth that came along wth hearing the voice, but Frisk just couldn't place it. Perhaps the more complicated memories required being place back in the sky before she could piece things back together. "Well... It looks like we need to get started, huh? We've got a lot of memories to get through." Frisk muttered, eyes the scattered orbs, spread out across the grass, as far as she could see.

This was going to take a while.

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Okay. Now that I no longer need to worry about an angry mob... *grabs Red and opens a portal to my bedroom* I don't have to write while on the run anymore!

Red: *chokes on air* w-wait, is this your bedroom?!

Oh, relax. It's not like I'm planning to drug and rape you. Probably. *clears throat* Now, I can finally talk about some things.

Frisk, this chapter fought me on every conceivable level. I rewrote the first bit about a dozen times, and then I was just dry on inspiration for CS, while my honeymustard fic was flowing like a freaking river. Eventually, I had to replan out big chunks of the plot just to move past this point. So, if I gave you spoilers, consider them _invalid until further notice_ , okay? Example: Frisk wasn't originally going to get her memories back here. I told a couple of lucky people that I planned on having Chara slowly fixing them in the background, but I literally could _not_ make anything for this chapter work without taking it this direction.

Second; The usual reminders to check out the tumblr (which is linked in chapter 12) at countingstarsundertale. Some really cool stuff can be found there; I had one reader who made a comic based on the last chapter's A/N, for one! And I post stuff to it fairly regularly, that's also where you'll find update info.

Red: is that all?

Yep. Now I'm going to bed.


	20. The Girl You Think I Am

So... Um, Hi!

Red: it's been a _month_ , kid.

Weeeeeell... fuck.

Red: yup.

I am _so sorry_ , you guys! I wish I could say I had a nice long chapter for you, buuuuut... I can't.

Red: well, you _can_ , but you'd be lying.

Put a sock in it, skull boy. Look, guys... I'm super busy. I've got two other WIPs and I work tow jobs. And I have to eat and sleep sometime. BUT! I want to get you guys regular content! I really do! So... From now on, the chapters will be a bit shorter. I'm hoping that with less of a word count requirement, I'll be able to pump out more updates for all three of my stories. Okay? I love ya!

(Also I didn't get enough Questions to do Ask the Cast... :()

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Francine Thana Seraphee, daughter of Beatrice Seraphee nee Anderson and Caleb Seraphee. The second child, with one older sibling, James. She loves to tell stories and sing songs. A bright, happy little girl. A bit of an outcast.

Francine.

Her name is Francine.

But she'd always preferred Frisk.

And she had a Ma and a Daddy and a big brother. And her big brother had a wonderful girlfriend named Bianca, who studied myths and wanted to be a vet.

But...

Her name was WDG-3 F. She also went by Frisk. She had a precious baby brother named Papyrus and a wonderful, protective big brother named Sans.

She'd lived in a house, she'd lived in a lab.

She was neither Frisk, nor WDG-3 F.

She was both.

Her mind began to accept that she wasn't the same as before she lost her memory, and she wasn't the same as after she did. That she was a blend of the two.

Her confusion began to clear as she made a decision.

She was Frisk Seraphee, daughter of Beatrice and Caleb. Younger sister to Jamie and Sans, elder sister to Papyrus. The little girl that had fallen down a mountain and met a flower, and freely offered it part of the very culmination of her being. The little girl that believed that everyone could be a good person if they only tried.

She was Frisk, the girl with the red and gold wings and a soul filled with determination.

And nothing could change that.

With a smile at Chara, she allowed herself to return to the waking world, pulling Sans and Papyrus along with her.

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"Alphys, what in the world have you gotten yourself into?" Oberon Novan demanded of his daughter as he stared at the frankly stunning array of individuals in the room. The King, the former Queen, a bartender who was also a decorated veteran of the Great War, the second-in-command of the Royal Guard, two members of the K-9 Unit of the Royal Guard, his daughter, and her best friend.

Before Alphys could respond, a small head poked out of the doorway that presumably led to the back of the bar. A skeleton's head, to be precise.

"miss toriel?" the small, male voice asked with a slight tremble, though his grin never moved. "can we come out?"

"Sans!" The former Queen cried as she rushed towards the child and pulled him into her warm embrace. "It is good to see you awake. How are your siblings?"

"they're up too..."

"That is good, my child, very good. Please, do come out here, all of you. Our guests are here."

Oberon watched the little boy step cautiously out of the door frame, looking up at Toriel with large white pupils. "th-the ones wh-who'll lock the doctor away so he can't hurt us?"

Alphys's father felt a slight sinking feeling when Toriel nodded. It had to be a coincidence...

But then another small figure made its way out of the door way; a tiny little human girl with a skeleton toddler in her arms and a pair of red and gold wings partway extending form her back.

" _Two little skepetons and a winged human, Daddy! You've gotta believe me!"_

" _We have to help them!"_

" _Why won't you_ listen _, Daddy!?"_

The hybrid looked around at the small crowd, smiling tentatively. "H-hello... My name is Frisk... And this is my baby brother Papyrus." She held the squirming toddler close, murmuring softly to him for a second. The child stopped fidgeting and Frisk turned to the older skeleton. "And this is my big brother Sans..."

They all looked uncomfortable.

"Perhaps we should all sit on the floor, perhaps in a circle?" Queen Toriel asked slowly. "It may be easier to tell our stories if we're all on the same level.

King Asgore nodded. "That make sense, Toriel."

Reluctantly, the group arranged themselves into a rough circle on the floor, with Papyrus sandwiched between Frisk and Sans protectively, and the three of them sitting a bit apart form the rest of the group.

"Okay... Hello, everyone. (Perhaps we should start by introducing ourselves, dear?) Ah, Yes. I am Dogamy and this is my lovely wife (Dogaressa.)" Dogamy and Dogaressa smiled at the group. "We will be (Taking your statements.) Does anyone want to (go first?)"

"I will." Alphys said with much more confidence than her father had ever heard from her. "It all started a few months ago..."

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 _Alphys was bored. She was at her Daddy's work, and there were lots of neat things happening around her, but Daddy wasn't paying her any attention. She'd gone so far as to tell him she was going to drink the oil he was using for the robot he was building, and had only gotten meaningless mumbles of agreement._

 _So, she'd started to fidget, sneaking a clean blueprint and beginning a rough sketch of an idea she'd had recently, to make a robotic body for that nice ghost, Mettablook, that Undyne was friends with. She worked on this for a while before it stopped keeping her attention and she began looking around for something else to do._

 _A flash of bright yellow caught her eye from under the table and she turned towards it, but wasn't fast enough to see what it had been. However, under the table, something was shining in the shadows. Alphys hopped out of her chair, still completely ignored by her father, and crawled around his feet to see what it was._

 _There, tucked under the table leg where nothing had been before, was a key card on a lanyard and a scrap of paper. Quietly, Alphys worked them loose and crwaled back out./_

 _Her father hadn't even noticed, far too engrossed in his work to care what his six-year-old was up to._

 _She opened the note to find a cryptic message written in sloppy handwriting._

"HELP THEM. DOOR TO BASEMENT. ACCESS CODE 54682 PLEASE THEY NEED HELP KNOCK OUT SECURITY FIRST"

 _She thought about showing her Daddy, but she was worried he would just think it was a prank or something. Besides, the note reeked of adventure! Disabling security cameras and and sneaking into the private basement to rescue persons unknown...Plus, she'd always wanted to know what was down there._

 _She'd prepare tonight, and go to the basement the next day._


	21. Secrets

Red: so an entire chapter that's a flashback?

Yup.

Red: okay, then.

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 _Alphys stealthily made her way down to the basement stairs, ducking past several scientists who would no doubt wonder what she was doing away from her father's office, and so late at night. There was a growing apprehension in her soul, like it knew more than she did and it was trying to warn her. But that was a silly thought, right? Stuff like that only happened in her amines._

 _Her roundabout route eventually took her to the large electronic door that led to the basement._

 _She swiped the keycard and inputted the passcode._

 _With a beep, the door slid open. A blast of chilled air slipped out._

 _Suddenly afraid of what she may find, Alphys pulled out her cell phone and began typing, easily disrupting the cameras and erasing the records that she'd opened the door._

 _She's come this far._

 _The little girl stepped into the doorway, and it slid shut with an ominous_ swish _._

 _Her first impression of the lab beneath the lab was one of confusion. It was dark and cold and not at all a healthy environment for experimentation. Or any kind of work._

 _Her second impression was fear. The whole place had a... Darkness... Over it, like the very walls themselves were watching her and judging her worth._

 _Well, if the walls had eyes she would not be found lacking! With a courage she didn't know she possessed, Alphys pressed onward._

 _These halls were creepy. They were dank and cold and eerily impersonal. Most of the labs upstairs had pictures and charts and colorful bulletin boards, but the bare steel and monotonous coloring freaked her out a bit. This wasn't a place of discovery; This place felt like a prison._

 _And somebody was here who needed help._

 _It was after a while of simply wandering that Alphys heard the voices, the first thing besides the hum of machinery and the sound of her own echoing footsteps that she had heard since arriving._

 _"I just got so frustrated!" A female voice said, sounding young and petulant. Like Undyne, when Gerson told her she had to stop practicing with her spears before she exausted herself. "I can't take off from a running start, I don't know what it is!"_

 _Alphys quietly headed towards the voice._

 _A different voice, probably male, and sounding much calmer and quieter but equally young, said, "so you just wanted to get in the air, then?"_

 _Alphys was almost to a corner in the hall, where she would hopefully be able to see the speakers without being seen._

 _"Yes. And the next thing I know, I'm rising straight up!"_

 _Alphys poked her head around the corner to see a small room at the end of the hall, with three tiny figures in it._

 _"can you do it again?"_

 _One of the figures nodded, but froze after a second, and Alphys realized she'd been seen. She stumbled back, falling on her rear with a thump._

 _Gathering her courage, Alphys climbed back to her feet. She'd been seen, so there was no point in hiding. She picked up her cell phone from where it had skittered when she fell and made her way back to the corner. She stopped there for just a second, taking a deep breath and steeling herself, before turning the corner and slowly walking towards the others._

 _On closer inspection, the 'room' at the end of the hall was less of a room and more of a cell- there a was an observation window set into the wall and the door was heavy steel, electronically locked._

 _The three in the cell were young. Very young. One was an actual_ toddler _, clinging to one of the others, and he looked to be a skeleton. Another was what looked shockingly like a human (but it couldn't be a human, right? If a new one had fallen down, surely somebody would've said something), with long tangled hair and big red eyes that were watching her every move. The third child was another skeleton, less... Pointy... Than the toddler, and much older. All three were wearing paper-thin gowns in a sickly shade of light green._

 _"H-hi." She said nervously. "I-I'm Alphys..."_

 _"It can talk." The Not-Human muttered._

 _Before Alphys could get offended, the older skeleton boy said quietly, "so can we."_

 _"Yes." The girl agreed with a nod. Behind her, a pair of pretty red and gold wings extended from the back of her gown. "Are you a new lab assistant or something?"_

 _"you're very small." The boy commented._

 _"That's a pretty gown, what color is it?"_

 _They were eyeing her with a combination of wariness and utterly adorable curiosity. She couldn't help but laugh._

 _"I am not a new lab assistant. I'm not supposed to be here. Please don't tell anyone I was here... I'm small because I'm young, I'll get bigger eventually. My dress is pink."_

 _The girl tilted her head and her wings twitched. "Dress." She muttered, trying out the word._

 _"Yes." She spun around slightly, so the skirt of her dress would flare out. The toddler giggled._

 _"So you aren't supposed to be here?" The girl asked._

 _Alphys shook her head._

 _A low rumbling noise cut the conversation off. The girl blushed and rubbed her stomach._

 _"Are you guys hungry?"_

 _They both nodded frantically._

 _Alphys dug through her little pink backpack, drawing out granola bars and chisp packets and wishing she had something more filling for these three. She passed the wrappers through the little slot on the doorway. "Here."_

 _As the older boy worked the packages open, she realized she still didn't know their names._

 _"Um... What are you guys called?"_

 _"I am WDG-3 F." The girl said in a monotone. "This is my brother, WDG-1 S. And this is my brother, WDG-2 P."_

 _Alphys stared at them in confusion, while 'WDG-1 S' began to patiently feed the smallest of them chisps, after eating a single one himself._

 _"Is something wrong?" The girl asked. Alphys noticed that she hadn't stopped eyeing her since she'd come into the open._

 _"Yes... Those aren't names."_

 _"They are our designations." The girl replied blandly._

 _"Yes, but-"_

 _"We aren't really people, Miss Alphys. We don't need names."_

 _S opened another bag of chisps and, after once again eating one to be sure they were safe, continued feeding the baby._

 _Alphys was reeling from what she was hearing. "Of course you're really monsters!"_

 _"Not according to the Doctor."_

 _"The Doctor?"_

 _"he made us. here in the lab." S broke in. "he turned f into a... what's the word he used?"_

 _"Hybrid." The girl in question responded without looking at him._

 _"yeah, into a hybrid. he says she used to be a human." S set the toddler aside once he started turning his nose up at the offered food, and handed the bag of chisps to F. She eagerly started gobbling them down. But when he turned to look directly at her, Alphys noticed the array of cracks around his eye._

 _"What happened to your face?!"_

 _"the doctor broke it." S shrugged._

 _"B-but, but?!" She couldn't form the words. But that's wrong, but that's horrible, but you're just kids! Kids like me!_

 _S just opened a granola bar, took a small test bite, and handed it to his sister._

 _Alphys gathered herself. "Okay. First thing, we're gonna come up with some real names for you guys, okay?"_


	22. All I Ask

Without looking up from her lap, Alphys explained how she'd tried to tell her dad, and then her mom, and then several aides and even a member of the Guard, about what she'd seen in the True Lab.

Not a soul believed her. She didn't blame them. The story was farfetched, sounding like the ramblings of an imaginative child. She would've thought it was all made up hoopla if she hadn't seen it for herself. But she had, and so she was still frustated that nobody would even consider the idea that she was telling the truth.

"I decided to take matters into my own hands." She muttered. "Nobody would believe without proof, and nobody was willing to come see the proof I had, probably because it was illegal to break into the lab like I did.

"I didn't let that stop me." Alphys looked around at the assembled group, meeting all of their eyes in an uncharacteristic display of steadfastness. "My new friends needed help. And I was the only one who could give it to them."

"She started coming in, every couple of nights after the Doctor would leave and the lights would turn off," Frisk broke in, leaning against Sans and bouncing Papyrus on her knee. "She was our angel. She'd always bring food for us. She taught me nursery rhymes to sing to Paps. She'd bring us toys to play with, board games to play, and she taught us how. She'd bring in books to read to us, because some days we were too tired or hurt from the tests to play." The girl's voice shook. "You can't possibly understand. She didn't just bring us food, she didn't just bring us games and storybooks and toys and company. She brought us _hope_. Real, irreplaceable hope."

Alphys blinked, looking over at her friend in a little bit of shock. Not only was that the most eloquent she'd ever heard the hybrid be, but the sincerity in her words knocked the young monster onto her heels. How did one respond to being held in such high esteem by a friend? Especially when she didn't feel she truly deserved it- surely anyone else would've done the same for them, had they been in Alphys's place?

Sans smiled wanly in her direction as if he knew exactly what she was thinking. Papyrus babbled something resembling a thank you.

"How did you (escape?)"

"alphys could disable the security, but she needed to come up with a way to keep the doctor from following us."

"We're almost certain he has some kind of tracker on us." Frisk nodded at Sans. "He went out of his way to show us he could find us no matter where we hid in the lab."

"so we had to wait for her to figure out what he used and how to disable it." Sans continued without pause.

"But then the Doctor made us bond-"

"-so she had to step up her timetable-"

"-And that meant that she didn't have time to examine every single computer."

By this point, everyone present, sans Papyrus, was watching the pair as they smoothly finished each other's thoughts, heads turning back and forth like a tennis match was in progress.

"so she figured out how to disable all of the electronics."

"All at once, everything in the lab experienced a catastrophic failure."

"and so we ran. a royal guard nearly saw us, so allie sent us off on our own."

"And we ended up in Waterfall, where I got sick and we met Miss Toriel."

The Guard dogs nodded in unison, looking solemn. "Anything to (add, Lady Asgore?)"

"Don't call me that." The queen said, almost automatically. "I found them because I was walking through the dump. Frisk had collapsed, and Sans was trying to heal her. But his heaing magic wasn't working very well. I took over, and offered them a chance to come home with me after I saw their hands-"

"What about their hands?" Scylla demanded, looking up from the notes she was taking.

"Children?" Toriel said softly. "Would you please show them?"

Sans winced, and Alphys frowned. She knew he was really self-conscious of his handplate. So she wasn't really all that surprised when it was Frisk who stuck out her hand, palm-down.

"Wha..." The fish lady leaned forward, staring in horror at the screws attaching the cold metal to Frisk's flesh and the bones underneath it. Then, her voice trembling in anger in much the same way Undyne's always did when faced with injustice, she hissed, "Okay. Do... do all three of you have them?" When Frisk nodded somberly, she snarled. "I'm going to dust him!"

"Are those (screwed right in?) That's horrible!"

"it's not so bad, now." Sans muttered almost petulantly. "it hurt a lot when he put it on, though." 

"W-wait!" Alphys yelped. "You w-were _awake_ when he did that!? Y-you never told me-"

"i tried to escape. he wanted to punish me..." Sans's eyelights went dark, as he stared uneasily into the distance, seeming to be in another time and place entirely. "wanted to make certain I never tried to run off again. wanted to be sure i knew my place, and that paps never forgot his."

The sound of something snapping had them all looking up at Scylla, who blushed slightly as she moved the broken pen away from the paper pad, holding it over her jeans so she didn't get any on the floor. "Er... Sorry."

Sans shook his head as though to clear it, looking mildly upset. Frisk put her arm around him and leaned close, almost automatically.

Alphys couldn't help but smile at their closeness. With Papyrus seated on Frisk's lap, amusing himself by conjouring tiny bones and making them into a confusing but somehow completely stable stack, and Sans cuddling into her side, the trio made an adorably heartwarming image.

Now that the basic facts had been established, the guards got to the meat of the problem.

"Please tell us about how Doctor Gaster treated you three."


	23. Safe in the Arms of Love

So tired X.X

Red: i'm still mad at you for yesterday's sby update. frisk went full on psycho!

Too damn bad, Sans.

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Toriel sighed softly, flicking the lights witch and shrouding the children's room in darkness. They were huddled together on the bed, already asleep. Frisk had snatched up one of the plushies from the toybox and was clinging to both it and Papyrus. She'd seemed a little annoyed with it, actually, and Toriel couldn't help but wonder why.

But that was extremely low on her list of priorities.

Today had been... about ten times as bad as she had been expecting. Seeing Asgore, learning far more about what Gaster had done to her children than she'd found she _ever_ wanted to know... It was so bad, all of it. Frisk's little voice shaking as she described being cut open, or beginning to dust... Sans's monotone descriptions of their punishments for failure or disobedience... Papyrus starting to fuss as his older siblings' moods dropped...

Finding out from Oberon that he had accidentally tipped the Royal Scientist off to their plans, all because of poor information sharing... They'd sent out the Guard as soon as possible, of course, but Toriel wasn't hopeful. Wingdings had always been intuitive enough to recognize when to flee.

Before, that idea made her feel happy, because it had saved the life of a close friend during the War. Now... Her blood boiled at the thought, and she wished he had died in that raid.

 _Ring ring!_ Her cell phone went off, and she quickly covered it with a paw and rushed down the hall, entering the living room.

"Hello?"

"Lady Asgore?" Scylla's voice crackled over the speaker, and Toriel rolled her eyes. Soldiers. She could tell them not to call her that until she was blue in the face, but since it was her... _offishial_... title, of course they would continue.

"Yes, my dear?"

"The old bastard got away, but it looks like he left most of his hard copies of his records in the hidden lab that the kids described." The Deputy Head of the Royal Guard said, sounding bitter. "And it's _bad_. Like, there's some disturbing shit down here. Captain Gerson is thinking we should go over these with you and the King. It might help you help them if you know what they've been through..."

There was some indecipherable shouting. "Hang on, your highness." Scylla said. There was some white noise as the fish lady most likely covered the speaker, and Toriel took the chance to take a seat on the couch.

"I've just been informed that they've found the lab assistant's personal journals."

"Lab assistant?" Toriel asked curiously.

"Yeah, I actually went to school with her younger sister, Nikita... We keep in touch... Roslyn, that was her name. Niki told me almost a year ago that she'd fallen down, said she-" Scylla stopped short.

"She what?" Toriel asked, leaning forward in her seat. Something told her she wasn't going to like this.

"That she'd committed suicide." Scylla's voice trembled. "And... Oh, stars... I think I'm gonna be sick!" The phone made a loud clattering noise and then went nearly silent, only the faint static and what sounded like footsteps letting Toriel know she was still connected. There was an awful retching, and a new voice picked up the line.

"Hello?" The familiar scratchy voice of Gerson came across the line.

"Captain, what's going on over there?"

"Scylla's puking into a sink, Lady Asgore." The gruff, accented voice explained without missing a beat.

"Toriel." She corrected automatically. " _Why_ is she puking into a sink?"

"Because." Scylla's voice came, weak and far from the receiver. Toriel guessed that, as per procedure, she was currently on the speakerphone over in the lab. "I just put some things together, and it's awful, it's horrible, and Wingdings Gaster is the sickest sonofabitch I've ever had the displeasure to know of."

"What is it, Lassie?" Gerson demanded.

"I... I need to talk to Nikita before I tell you. She deserves to know. And I'd like to read through these journals, too. Just to confirm my theory."

"Alright, you know the drill for handling evidence. And for disclosing information."

"Don't worry, sir. I don't plan on telling her anything classifed. Lady Asgore?"

"Yes, my dear?"

"I would like to meet with you tomorrow. Perhaps separately from meeting with the King?"

"... Alright. Please come to the door to the Ruins at eight o'clock. Perhaps you could bring young Miss Undyne? And Miss Alphys, if possible?"

"I'll speak to her father." Scylla said agreeably. "I will see you then."

"Have a good night, my dear, and thank you."

The line went dead, and Toriel sighed, rubbing her eyes in frustration.

This was all so complicated.

"Miss Toriel?"

Toriel started, turning around and looking over the back of her sofa. Frisk stood nervously in the hallway, the teddy bear she'd taken from the toy box still in her arms. "Yes, my child?"

"... I had a nightmare..."

And she'd come to see her? That... was a lot, a _lot_ of progress.

She almost told the girl to come to her, but thought better of it, instead wording it in a more comfortable manner. It was difficult to remember sometimes, how fragile these three were. Simple words could set them off if placed in the wrong format. "Would you like to come here?"

The child gave a small nod and scrambled over the back of the couch rather than walking around it.

"Would you like to tell me what your nightmare was about?" The former Queen asked gently.

Frisk picked at the feathers growing out of her wrist, straightening and unaligning them in a repetitive motion.

"... When I first woke up in the lab, I didn't remember a lot." The girl said in a trembling voice. "My name, Frisk, and a couple of things about the surface." She peeked up at the goat woman from behind her bangs. "But... When I did that magic overload thing, I got 'em back. A-and I remembered... My Ma and Daddy and big brother Jamie... And... I dreamed that... I dreamed that I was home, but they didn't..." Tears welled up in her big red eyes. "They didn't know who I was! They said I couldn't be me, cuz I wasn't human! They _didn't want me anymo-o-re_!" The child wailed, burying her face into Toriel's stomach. "A-and I know it's not true1 They still want me, they'd never leave me! B-but..."

The monster rubbed the little hybrid's back. "That does not lessen the hurt you are feeling, my child."

She sniffed, pulling back and wiping her eyes. "Y-yeah.."

Toriel hummed softly. "I think, my child, that you are very brave for telling me this. And I am very, very proud of you. And I think that your parents and your brothers, _all_ of them, would agree."

Frisk leaned into her chest. "C-can... Can I call you Mama? I miss Ma so much... It's only been a little while, but I remember her now and I just want... I just want my whole family together..."

"You can call me whatever you like, my dear little angel." Toriel said softly, running a hand through Frisk's hair. "I would be honored to be your Mama, and someday... I'm sure your own mother would be happy to see you."

"Thanks, Mama..." The girl muttered tiredly.

The pair sat like that for a while, until Toriel could hear the little body in her lap's soft snoring, and she carried the girl back to her room.

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And so FINALLY ends this day in narrative. (-_-)

Also, askcskids is the new tumblr blog where you can, well... Ask the Counting Stars Kids stuff! Check it out, bop them some asks!


	24. Ignorance

" _To be free, with all the ones you love around you... A worthy dream, is it not?"_

 _Sans looked over at the form of Chara, leaning against a seemingly solid part of the blackness surrounding them._

" _i suppose..." Sans said slowly, looking him up and down._

 _Chara was staring off into the distance, but Sans saw nothing, just an endless void of black. "Just because she remembered her other brother doesn't mean she suddenly loves you any less, Sans. There's no need to fear."_

" _i wasn't-"_

" _Kid, you keep forgetting that I'm in her head. And because of the bond, I'm in your head too. And the little one's, of course. I know everything gong through your puny little brain; all the doubt, the fear that's creeping in and wrapping its tendrils around your soul." Chara hadn't looked at him once during their little speech. "Frisk has her sights set on a family. Not just human, not just monster. She wants the best of both worlds." He closed his eyes, smirking slightly. "She wants all her brothers together. You don't have to worry about losing her, Sans, because she's afraid of losing_ you. _" Chara finally turned to him, and there was something... dark... in his gaze. "Don't make the same mistake I did. You three have something wonderful._

"Do not _let it die."_

And with that, the dream ended, and Sans's eye sockets slid open to find Frisk watching him. "Morning, bro." She smiled, her face framed by the soft light from the feathers in her hair.

He grinned at her. He couldn't really remember what he'd been dreaming about, but he felt a little better than he had the night before. A little less like his entire world had been thrown out of whack.

Things were changing, but that was okay. It would be okay.

Because they had each other.

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Toriel paced near the entrance to the Ruins, honestly nervous. With the exception of the trio of children currently under her care, the goat woman hadn't let anyone into the Ruins from the other side since before Danielle's murder. The one child that had stayed with her, struck down because she had been a _fool_...

The trio of thumping knocks on the large purple doors made her jump, and with some anxiety, Toriel turned towards the door.

This was her last chance to turn them away.

"Your Highness? We're here." Gerson's scratchy voice filtered through the door.

"Who is 'we'?" Toriel asked. If Asgore was there, there was no way she was opening those doors, no sir.

"Me, Scylla, and these little lasses; Alphys and Undyne. And a Miss Nikita Hizna, who is the younger sister of the woman who was working with Gaster."

Toriel took a deep breath. Okay. She could do this.

She could do this.

She stepped forward and began to undo each of the many locks on the door.

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Niki Hizna was uncertain if she wanted to be here.

But... She had to know. Had to know _why_.

Her big sister, the one who'd raised and protected her for Nikita's entire life, her _big sister_ was dust, and Niki had nothing left but memories of happier times. Times before Rozzie had gone to work under that Royal Scientist, before she'd come home from a job she'd used to adore looking tired and worn, times before the two of them would go to bed angry at one another because they'd had _another_ screaming match, times before Niki watched her sibling gain more and more XP and Roslyn didn't think Niki had noticed _but she had_. She'd lost count of how may times she'd screamed to the heavens in the privacy of her own home, demanding Rozzie _come back and tell her_ _ **why**_.

But...

 _ **But nobody came**_.

Of course nobody came. For all that they were Boss Monsters, death was death. A lingering soul didn't change that.

It was so unfair.

How... How could she just leave her, without even a note!? Without even trying to _talk_ to her!?

Without even saying goodbye?

And so when Scylla had come to her the night before and said that, during their investigation into a crime the Royal Scientist had committed, they'd found her sister's personal journals... She jumped on the offer to hear what they said. Scylla had warned her, though, that the notebooks probably contained some disturbing information, and that she would not be able to breathe a word of what she learned to _anyone_ until the Guard publicly released the information.

If they ever did.

But Niki was convinced that just knowing would be enough.

So the bird woman had followed the fish woman and the turtle man. They stopped at Scylla's brother's home, oddly enough, and picked up two young girls, who were chattering excitedly, and Niki found herself wondering if this was an investigation or a play date? Because these two didn't seem to notice the tense atmosphere of the rest of the group, they were talking about some little friends of theirs, and they seemed oblivious to the purpose of going... Wherever it was that they were going. Niki was slightly confused on that front. This seemed to be quite a ways to go just to read her sister's journals and look at some other files.

Then, Captain Gerson has knocked on the big purple door set into the cave wall and called out to a "Your Highness", and Nikita rather abruptly realized that this place could not possibly be where the King was at this point in time, which only left... The Queen? They were meeting the Queen?

What the hell had her big sister gotten into?

The door swung open slowly, and a matronly woman who could only be Queen Toriel stood, hands clasped behind her back and smiling demurely, in the massive archway.

"Hello, Captain, Deputy, Miss Hinza. Good morning, Alphys, Undyne."

"G-good morning, Miss T-Toriel." The tiny little dinosaur girl said, shakily smiling up at the Queen.

"MORNING, MISS TORIEL!" Scylla's niece cheered, with all her aunt's normal excitement.

The (former?) Queen laughed and gestured them all inside. "Please, come in. Frisk, Sans, and Papyrus were just finishing up their breakfast."

The little mob followed the goat woman down a long hall with several turns, and Nikita found herself getting more and more uneasy, and she wasn't entirely certain why.

They climbed a short flight of stairs, and then entered a doorway into a sitting room, where tea was already set up. Niki gratefully took an offered seat on a comfortable ottoman, allowing her wings to spread ever so slightly, loosening her normally rigid posture as she relaxed for the first time since Scylla had come the night before.

There was a pitter patter of tiny little footsteps, and then a sharp gasp. Nikita glanced up to see a positively _tiny_ skeleton boy, staring at her with dark, fearful eye sockets.

" _m-miss r-roslyn!?_ "


	25. Sound of Madness

Sans stood stock-still, eyeing the bird woman who, at first glance, had looked like Roslyn. Her feathers were the same colors, and she was the same shape... But she was smaller, and not wearing glasses. Her eyes were the wrong color.

And Miss Roslyn was dead, what remained of her soul part of the mishmash that made up Frisk's.

"i, uh... s-sorry..." The child muttered, stumbling backwards.

"You knew Rozzie?" The woman was still staring at him, her eyes questioning. The other people in the room, Miss Toriel and Miss Scylla and a man he didn't know, also looked over.

Sans... didn't want to answer. He needed out, he needed away, and he needed it _now_. He could feel their _eyes_ on him even when they looked away, and they were _watching_ and _judging_ and-

With a crackle of magic, he vanished.

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"Sans!" Toriel yelped, leaping to her feet. Sans could teleport? "Frisk, where is Sans?!"

The hybrid stuck her head in the room. "Wasn't he just here, Mama?" It was a clear sign of her remembering her time on the surface that she didn't stutter or seem very afraid by the amount of people in the room, in direct contrast to Sans's fleeing the moment they all looked at him.

"He... I think he teleported, my child!"

"Oh." Frisk didn't sound all that concerned after hearing that. "He's not far, then. I'll go look for him?"

"We'll come with!" Undyne stated as though it were a fact. Frisk smiled shyly at her.

"That'd be great. Let me just get Paps-"

Toriel frowned. "My child, are you sure you don't wish to leave him here? I can assure you, I am most capable of looking after him while you search out your brother."

Frisk froze, suddenly looking out of her depth. "B-but, Paps... He needs- I need-"

"My child, do you trust me?"

Toriel watched with almost bated breath as the girl sucked in a breath and shut her eyes, looking pained. What was going through her mind?

"Please be careful." Frisk said, those large red eyes opening, glowing with an inner light.

"It will be fine." Toriel said softly. "Nobody will harm him." _Nobody will harm you, my child_.

Frisk gave a short, sharp nod, and ran from the room with Alphys and Undyne on her tail-feathers.

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"Okay, so are we going to read Rozzie's journals?" Nikita demanded as Toriel returned from the kitchen with a skeleton toddler in her arms. 'Paps' contently chewed on the former queen's sleeve.

"Yes. If you believe you are ready."

Scylla waited for the consenting nods of everyone else in the room before opening the most recent journal. "From what I've skimmed, this one was the one where her journal stopped being a diary and started being... well... A confessional." She lifted the red leather bound book and began to read.

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 _Log 001:_

 _I am afraid... I may have made a horrible, awful mistake. One I cannot simply take back._

 _The Doctor, the Royal Scientist, Wingdings Gaster, he came to me several years ago, explaining that he had a plan to create the perfect weapon to break the barrier._

 _And... And to kill humans._

 _He wanted my help, told me my degree in monster genetics would be perfect._

 _I should've taken that as a red flag._

 _But I didn't._

 _When he wanted to use his own DNA to create it, I should've realized something was amiss._

 _But I didn't._

 _He told me it wouldn't be sentient._

 _It was._

 _He can think, can learn._

 _Can laugh._

 _The Doctor insisted. We had to continue with the project._

 _It was for the good of monsterkind._

 _And I should've told him no. I should've taken that child and run for it._

 _But I didn't._

 _Log 009:_

 _I can still hear him screaming._

 _I never wanted this._

 _But I have to keep going._

 _It's for the greater good._

 _Log 015:_

 _S has stopped begging for us to stop hurting him._

 _I'm glad. It made today's tests more bearable._

 _I have to keep reminding myself that he's not a real monster._

 _I caught myself teaching him what puns were, and how to tell a good bad knock knock joke._

 _Doctor Gaster was furious._

 _He's right, I'm getting too attached._

 _I must distance myself from him._

 _Log 037:_

 _Subject shows signs of constant exaustion. It is grump- irritable, it is irritable all the time and beginning to disobey orders._

 _Doctor Gaster has asked me to come up with a way to calm it before we have to terminate it, and years of our hard work goes down the tubes._

 _Log 039:_

 _I have taken to talking to it for ten minutes every day before I leave for home, in an attempt to pacify it's ever-increasing frustation. The methods I have been using to disassociate myself from thinking of it as a real monster are difficult to maintain when it is crying and asking me why I hate it._

 _I can feel my XP rising every single day._

 _Log 042:_

 _Niki and I got in a screaming match last night._

 _I hate this double life I lead._

 _Log 047:_

 _I have made an awful mistake._

 _I tried not to see him as a real being with thoughts and feelings and hopes. I hoped it would make things easier on me._

 _Subject S is incredibly fragile. One hit point, only one._

 _Gaster nearly killed him today. Purely by accident, because he lost his temper with S._

 _I managed to pump in enough healing magic to put most of his skull back together. There are still some nasty cracks around his eye._

 _When I moved to leave, he'd turned his head just barely to look at me, and he was crying._

 _I've never been good at blocking out his tears._

 _Three words, that was all he said. But there was so much pain in his voice..._

 _Pain I caused._

 _He's only a child and I hurt him so damn much..._

 _"don't leave? p-please?"_

 _And for just a second, I saw Niki, sick as a dog, in the hospital with pneumonia, begging me to stay the night because she was lonely._

 _I couldn't bring myself to look at him as I shuffled from the room, leaving him strapped down in the clinic area._

 _His sobs as I left seemed to follow me home._

 _It's eating away at me._

 _Log 049:_

 _I suggested the Doctor make another._

 _He was complaining that he couldn't test on S while he was recovering. I pointed out that if we made another, we would have a second set of data to work with, and we may be able to fix whatever malfunction made S so fragile._

 _And it would keep him busy while S was convalescing._

 _I know in my heart that I am not suggesting it for entirely scientific reasons._

 _S is lonely._

 _And I am guilty._

 _My sins crawl down my back every day._

 _Log 105:_

 _I have lost count of how many awful mistakes I have made._

 _This is hardly anything new._

 _I had hoped that giving S a companion would ease some of the guilt I felt._

 _I was wrong._

 _I was so, so wrong._

 _S and P remind me so much of myself and Niki. Brothers and sisters, the elder protecting the younger as best they can._

 _Stars, Niki..._

 _We almost never speak anymore..._

 _This lab takes up more and more of my life, of myself, and for what? What is the end goal?_

 _To force two innocents to fight a war against creatures they've never even heard of?To commit genocide on a species that the members of which that wronged us have long since died out?_

 _I cannot do this any longer._

 _I cannot justify this with the greater good._

 _This was never supposed to happen._

 _I cannot handle the weight of my own guilt._

 _It is selfish. I am leaving them to fend for themselves._

 _It is selfish. Niki will not have the answers she deserves._

 _It is selfish._

 _But I am a coward._

 _ **Goodbye.**_

 _ **I am so sorry.**_


	26. Halfway Gone

Nikita had never been so _disgusted_ in her life.

After reading through Roslyn's guilt laden diaries, the Queen and the Captain of the guard had provided her with most of the information she was lacking in regards to just what her sister had been working on. And after reading what had happened after her elder sister's death in the Royal Scientist's experiment logs and journals, she was _horrified_.

The image she'd held of her older sister had crashed and burned.

Roslyn... Had done something unforgivable. Unforgivable!

Nikita shook in her seat, staring blankly at a spot on the wall while wind rushed in her ears. She was barely conscious of the other three adults as they bustled about and exchanged meaningless drivel about things that just didn't matter to her.

Roslyn had been a party to the torture and weaponization of _children_. She'd cut them open, torn them apart, caused them physical and emotional distress... She'd lied and pretended everything was fine while she was willfully abusing those poor, poor souls.

And when she started to feel guilty, she pushed it away and kept doing wrong.

And... And when it got to be too much, and she could no longer blind herself to the _atrocities_ she was committing, Roslyn had elected to take the most _**selfish**_ route possible. Instead of telling somebody, _anybody_ , instead of finding some way to help those two innocent children, she killed herself without a word as to why.

She was sooooo _guilty_ that she couldn't face her own fucking actions, but she wasn't _sorry_ enough to make an effort to _fix_ them. Instead, she just left 'Subject S-1' and 'Subject P-2' to fend for themselves under the heel of a madman.

It was _sickening_ , and if Nikita could she would beat her sister into the ground for what she'd done. And for what she _hadn't_ done.

Niki couldn't stand the thought that the woman she'd idolized her entire life was, at the end, an absolutely selfish _scumbag_.

Sniffling, she hugged herself in her wings, thinking about the remains of her sister's soul, seemingly crudely stitched to the girl from earlier's. She couldn't help but wonder if it would affect the girl's attitude.

From what little she'd seen, she didn't really think so. Rozzie was dead. Those shards of soul were just her magic.

Nikita felt tears begin to drip down her beak. Her entire worldview had been shattered in a day...

Something clambered onto her lap.

"NO CRY PLEASE MISS LADY? NO NEEDS BE SADS!" A tiny pair of boney arms encircled her middle. Niki quickly wiped her eyes, staring down at the tiny skeleton toddler in a green-striped orange onesie. "PAPS MAKE BETTER!" He nuzzled her belly, and she let out an incredulous little half giggled.

After everything that had happened to this precious little child, he still didn't want to see her cry. He didn't even know who she was, but he still wanted to see her happy instead of sad...

Stars, this child was the sun given form...

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Doctor Gaster grinned as the tracker lit up at last. Now that he didn't have to keep up appearances for the fools in the labs, he had all the time in the world to work. So he'd simply pulled an all-nighter and gotten the machine up and running within sixteen hours.

There was even enough time to fix up one of his combat drones.

The tracker showed the three of them were currently scattered about the Ruins, with F-3 moving away from P-2 and towards S-1.

He set the machine to find its way through a side tunnel entrance to the Ruins, leading to Waterfall. The old tunnels were never used anymore, since they'd been blocked off with several magical doors, but the drone would easily be able to break through and find its way in without having to alert anyone who may be living there. Soon, he'd have his projects back, and he'd teach them exactly why running away had been the worst mistake of their short lives.

P-2 was an acceptable loss, in the grand scheme of things. With his timeline for breaking the barrier severely shortened, he didn't have time to wait for it to grow up, anyway. It was expendable- and replaceable.

The other two were not.

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"Sans!" Frisk shouted, both aloud and over the bond. Undyne and Alphys repeated the cry, panic tingeing their voices. 'Come on, where are you!?'

/Sans?! Come on, talk to us! Asshole!/

"Are you s-sure he's not too f-far?" Alphys asked, looking around the Ruins as they walked.

Frisk stamped her foot. "He's not really able to teleport very far, and this place is fairly linear... The only other thing I can think of is that he teleported to Snowdin Forest, but he wouldn't do that..." Or at least, she sincerely hoped he wouldn't do that. But Sans had a habit of not thinking ahead when he was panicked.

"SAAAAAAAAAANS! COME OUT, YOU'RE FREAKING YOUR LITTLE SISTER OUT!" Undyne yelled so loudly a few spiders fell off of the ceiling.

After a moment- 'frisk?'

'Sans!' She nearly sobbed in relief. 'Where are you!?'

'i dunno. fell in a hole.'

/... Seriously?/

"He says he fell in a hole." Frisk relayed, mood doing a three-sixty from worry to excitement.

"... Seriously?" Undyne gaped. Frisk burst out laughing.

"Hang on, we can work with this." 'Hot or cold, bro?'

'huh?' Frisk bounced a memory of what she meant over the bond. 'oh, um, cold. really cold. i can barely feel ya, sis.'

"Okay, this way, guys." Frisk said with less confidence than she'd hoped she'd have. She set off down the hallway, further from the little house in the back of the ruins. She was getting more and more nervous with every step.

Frisk found that she did _not_ like the idea of going further away from Papyrus. His presence in the bond was growing steadily fainter, and it was making her.. _itch_.

'warmer.'

Frisk fidgeted, tangling her fingers up in one another as she tried to focus on finding Sans.

'warmer.'

Papyrus's thoughts vanished from her mind, and Frisk panicked, stopping short and backing up the way she came.

"Frisk? Is everything a-alright?" Alphys asked nervously.

"I can't... I can't hear Paps if I go further."

" _Oh_." The little dino monster said softly. "B-but, you have to keep moving, we need you to be able to find Sans!"

"But Paps!"

"He's perfectly safe!" Undyne threw her hands in the air. "He's with the _Queen_ , for crying out loud!"

'frisk...? we... we have a problem...' Fear suddenly flooded the bond.

"S-sans?" Frisk stammered aloud. Both her companions shot her worried looks.

'frisk, it's... it's one of _his_... one of the drones! The big ones!'

Frisk snarled out a string of swearwords and took off down the hall, discomfort at leaving her baby brother's voice behind forgotten.

If one of the Doctor's drones had found Sans, they had a _serious_ problem.

 _They had never managed to take one down._


	27. Mine

Red: so you aren't at all concerned that _this_ is what you post after three weeks on a cliffie?

*leaning casually against a wall* Nope. Not at all. I am zen. I am the zenniest of zens.

Red: why am i still hanging around with you?

You won't admit it but you find my antics amusing?

Red: you have no friends.

Nope! *brightly* But hey! If you guys are in the mood to say hi, yell at me for the travesty you're about to read, or make requests, come bug me on tumblr! My main blog (18+ please) is at insanityallegra, and for the blog specific to this fic, at countingstarsundertale.

Red: you must be a masochist... actually inviting them to come kill you this time... kid, this isn't even five hundred words. And the contents!

*cackles* It's glorious! *twirls* Glorious, I say!

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Sans stared at the robot.

The robot stared back.

Once again, he tried to teleport. No dice, not enough magic in his reserves. His blind jump had taken him too far, too fast.

The room he'd fallen into through the floor above was filled with leaves in an odd pattern, and he couldn't find a way up. He was sure there should be stairs or something; the puzzle he'd been looking at seemed to suggest that falling down into this room was a completely normal part of solving it, but there was no way he could see to get upstairs.

This was not good.

This was very bad.

Very. Very. Bad.

The drone in front of him was made to be an efficient weapon in much the same way he was. The difference, of course, that Sans and his siblings were capable of planning, or thinking on their feet, of adapting. This thing was made to simply brute-force its way through all difficulties with a singlemindedness that terrified him. It was durable and powerful, and Sans had never beaten one. The only time he'd come close was when he and Frisk had double-teamed it.

And now he was by himself.

Frisk was getting closer, he could feel her. But it wasn't enough. There wasn't enough _time_...

The drone raised a single spindly arm, an attack charging at the end of it. Sans ducked out of the way of the blast.

'Hang on, I'm coming!' Frisk yelled over their bond.

Sans nodded at thin air, trying not to panic. The robot advanced, slowly pinning him in a corner.

It raised the arm once again, and Sans had nowhere to go.

'frisk, chara, paps... miss toriel... j-jamie... somebody... please...'

 _But nobody came._

The beam of light stuck, and everything went black.

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Frisk felt the connection drop just as she skidded to a stop a split second before falling into a gaping hole in the floor. She let out a strangled shriek and dove into the hole.

But there was nobody there.


	28. Angel With a Shotgun

Red: this chapter is almost worse than the last one!

*laughs* At least it's longer!

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/Okay Frisk, you need to calm the fuck down./

"I am perfectly fucking calm, Chara!" Frisk snapped aloud, clenching her fists.

She was not, in fact, calm. She stood in the middle of the room, shaking, teeth grinding, eyes jammed shut. Her magic was radiating off of her in waves, making the leaves on the floor skitter back and forth in an unseen wind.

/Frisk, if you don't get a hold of yourself now, you'll do something you'll regret later!/

"SHUT UP!" Frisk screamed. The ceiling of the room shook and caved in, dumping stone fragments onto the hybrid's head. She didn't so much as flinch.

 _ **Losing Sans fills you with determination.**_

Frisk snarled at nothing, anger clouding her thoughts.

She would take her brother back.

 _She'd tear the Underground to shreds if she had to._

A Froggit moved into her line of vision, looking frightened. She remembered these little fucks. The Doctor had made her kill a bunch.

It was unfortunate that the first thing Frisk saw after the Doctor managed to steal her sibling was yet another reminder of the lab. If things had been different, if it perhaps had been a Whimsun or a Moldsmal, she may have managed to calm down.

As it was, her vision tinted a bright, primary yellow. She raised a single hand, glowing in the same light, and several yellow feathers, sharp as razors, formed out of nothing.

She clenched her fist.

They came down.

Dust filled their air.

Her XP went up.

/Frisk!/ Chara's yell was ignored as the girl cracked a deranged smile.

More monsters came to investigate the noise and saw their felled fellow.

They attacked all at once. _They were trying to keep her from finding her brother._

She would make them all pay, every last one of them. It didn't matter who.

She would have her Justice. She would take her brother back from the Doctor.

She would destroy anyone that stood in her way. If they were the slightest threat to finding Sans, she would do exactly what she was meant to do.

Frisk would show the Doctor _exactly_ what his weapon had become.

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Undyne and Alphys tumbled down the hole ten minutes after hearing Frisk scream, followed by a loud rumbling and crashing sound. They'd been trying to keep up with her, but she'd been using her wings to push most of her weight, half flying, half running, and they'd been unable to keep her in sight.

Neither of them had noticed the enlarged hole until it was too late to slow down, and thus they fell.

Undyne heard giggling, and looked up from her sprawled position to see Frisk, facing away but with the feathers in herhair glowing a bright yellow, gleefully stabbing several small monsters with what seemed to be construct feathers. She was giggling, but in between Undyne could catch words and phrases like "In my way" and "Threaten me" and "Mine".

The other girl was _covered_ in dust. There were piles of it, and Undyne could only guess that other monsters had come to investigate the noise and been killed.

Frisk had _killed_ them. Was killing more!

As that thought sunk in, she jackknifed to her feet and formed an energy spear, jumping in front of Alphys, who was staring in horror at her friend.

"Frisk, what the heck are you _doing_?!"

The giggling girl spun around fully, facing Undyne as her new victims crumbled behind her. "Undyne~! Allie~!" Her eyes were no longer red, but a sickly yellow. She was smiling brightly, the layer of dust caking her face cracking ever so slightly. "It's good you're here. The nasty Doctor stole my brother, so now I've gotta find him." She tilted her head. "Doctor always said we were weapons. So I thought, 'Hey! All these monsters are in my way!' They won't leave me alone, just 'cause I killed that one-" She pointed at a pile of dust a little ways away from the others- "'Cause the little frogs, they work for the Doctor, y'know? But... The other monsters didn't like that. They were trying to stop me from leaving to find Sans. And, plus, there were even more frog guys. So I killed them, too!" She giggled. "Doctor always said we were weapons, so I thought I'd prove it."

Undyne summoned another spear, and Frisk frowned.

"You're going to try and stop me too, _**aren't you?**_ "


	29. The Pheonix

Undyne shivered unconciously as those sickly yellow eyes locked onto her, their pupils wide and dialated to the point that they practically overtook the glowing magic coloring Frisk's irises. The hybrid's head was tilted almost curiously, and her smile was a cold, brittle thing that stretched too-wide on her face. Her left eye was twitching slightly. A cloud of yellow feathers swirled around her, ready to fire at a moment's notice.

She was the very picture of someone who'd been overtaken by their Level of Violence.

A soft ting, accompanied by a familiar white light appearing in front of her chest signaled the beginning of a fight.

Undyne set her stance as a battle theme started to fill the air. Frisk smirked at her.

"You can still get out of my way, Undyne, Alphys. I'd hate to have to show you guys just what I can do."

Undyne shook her head. "I know you're upset, and I know you're afraid." That was probably an understatement. The fish girl remembered her auntie explaining how LV made you stronger, but at an awful price- your mental stability, and your empathy. More than a couple LV, and you would start to lose yourself. It was possible, though, for one to stay grounded despite high LV. They just needed an anchor, something they believed in, something to remind them of who they were. And odds were high, extremely high, that Sans was that anchor for Frisk. With him stolen by a man who had harmed them both so much, Frisk was probably feeling adrift in a river without a paddle headed for a waterfall while a talking ant playing 'O come all ye faithful' on a flute. Confused and very, very afraid. But... "I know you're hurting, but I can't let you hurt other people, Frisk."

The bird girl snarled. "Well if that's what you wish, _friend_."

Undyne took a deep breath. "Alphys. _Run_. Go find my aunt!"

"B-but-"

Undyne picked her friend up and simply threw the other monster back through the hole in the ceiling. "Run!"

As Alphys's terrified footsteps skittered down the hall above them, Undyne turned back to the hybrid.

She was met with a hundred razor-sharp feathers.

Instincts honed over a year of training with her aunt and the Captain of the Royal Guard had the fish girl ducking into a roll even as the primary yellow constructs shot through the space she'd just been occupying.

 _Okay, Undyne_. She thought _. You have no idea what Frisk is capable of. You know she was built to be a weapon of mass destruction. And she's currently not in her right mind._

She slid to the side, ducking another volley of feathers. Frisk snarled wordlessly, the glowing light in her eyes suddenly changing to an even split of indigo and yellow. Around them, rubble began glowing with the same aura.

 _And she's pretty determined to kill you._

Undyne used her spears to break several of the rocks as they flew at her, but was so distracted and hemmed into place by the projectiles that she didn't have a chance to dodge the next shot of yellow feathers.

With a cry of pain, Undyne unleashed a small flurry of tiny, needle-like lances of white light in the direction of her attacker.

 _Reasoning with her won't work. She's too far gone. Fighting might snap her out of it, if you can survive her attacks._

That was proving to be a rather tall order. Undyne could barely get a lick in, and she was hardly managing to dodge.

 _The only truly viable option is to wait her out. Either she'll snap out of this bloodlust, or help will arrive._

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Frisk was having a bad time.

She didn't understand.

Normally, when she got going like this, one hit was enough to take down whatever monster she was facing. 'The Genocide Effect', the Doctor had called it. Something something determination and 'human bloodlust', if she remembered right.

Undyne seemed to only rally and gain strength from her attacks.

The hybrid was starting to get angry.

This was bullshit.

Magic burned at her fingertips and she grit her teeth against the pain. She could smell her own charred flesh, and while it was unpleasant, it was hardly the end of the world. The Doctor had made her fight through far worse. Her blood sang with LOVE as she hummed along with her battle theme.

 _Put on your war paint._

She raised both burning hands, yellow, blue, and violet light mixing and mingling to form something unique, something she'd not ever tried.

Four magic types at once. Patience and Integrity, to pin her from jumping and keep her in one place. Purple to further keep her from escaping this trap. And this new, strange yellow Justice, to cut her to ribbons.

Stars, it hurt so much. Her body burned with exhaustion, her hands charred as though encased in fire rather than magic, and blood and dust spread across her face, her arms, her chest.

Undyne didn't stand a chance against the onslaught, but it left Frisk reeling- until the familiar feeling of leveling up pushed the tiredness away.

Yes.

This was good.

Now she could find Sans. Now she could save him and make the Doctor pay for what he did to them.


	30. Church Bells

Hi guys! Insane here! It's been a long time, but recently I was reminded that you can't let anon hate deter you from living your life. And I agreed, so I'll be posting here once more! That means those of you who couldn't or didn't want to track down my Ao3 account can finally read the rest of Stand ByYou and Counting Stars, as well as all my newer works. I'll probably be posting a chapter every day or so until I'm all caught up, so look forward to it! :)

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Chara ran.

Frisk's mindscape was in shambles, the building's crumbling, the wildflowers wilting, and the entire metaphysical area was tinted with an eerie red light.

Oh, and there were monsters.

Not the kind found beneath Mt. Ebott, but the kind found in nightmares.

Great slobbering four-legged beasts with jagged teeth and flaming skin, nipping at his heels as he desperately ran, trying to find a safe haven in the dilapidated mindscape.

He was going to die, he was sure of it. These hellhounds were going to catch him and rip him to pieces-

There was a light ahead, shining a bright blue. It looked like... A portal, of some sort?

Chara ran for it.

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Frisk ran. She didn't stop to catch her breath, she kicked over or stabbed any obstacles without breaking stride, and she kept running.

She had to find Sans.

She had to get Papyrus back.

She should've never let them get split up.

Never never never... They were hers, they weren't allowed to leave her.

Frisk ran.

The Ruins were not very big, and she didn't even reach Home before running headlong into an obstacle that was both wanted and unwanted. She'd known they were there, of course, because _he_ was there as well. And Paps was a good baby bro. The moment the bond had come back, the baby had chattered over it, happily telling her all about the enemies waiting to stop her from finding Sans.

Toriel, Alphys, Scylla and Gerson stood before her, blocking her path to the Door to the Rest of the Underground. Frisk set her stance, defensive, eyes locked on the tiny, upset-looking skeleton in Toriel's arms. Frisk knew he was upset because he was being held by someone she currently only saw as a foe, and she wanted him to be safe. Being carried by an enemy was the opposite of safe.

'Come to sister, Papyrus. Sister will protect you.' She cooed reassuringly over the bond.

Paps whined and started to fuss, squirming in Toriel's grip as the two sides stood at a stalemate, neither willing to make the first move.

"Please calm down, Papyrus." Toriel's whisper was pleading, but it only agitated the toddler further as he struggled to get loose and return to Frisk's side where he belonged.

"Lassie, you'd better calm yourself." The large turtle man said, and Frisk bared her teeth. She'd be perfectly calm if Toriel would just _give back_ her baby brother, and these people would just let her _pass_.

"Give him back." She hissed, summoning more magic feathers. Justice was on her side. "Give him back and let us go. Sans needs me, he needs me now. GET OUT OF MY WAY!"

"Frisk, my child, please-"

Papyrus shifted forms in Toriel's arms and bit her. She yelled out in pain, dropping him, and he scrambled across the hall to his sister, jumping into her arms and cowering. "Now let. Me. PASS!" Frisk shrieked.

When the adults showed no signs of moving, Frisk growled, raising the hand not cradling her baby brother to her chest and focusing.

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Toriel stared at the hostile child who had called her 'Mom' only hours before. Now she looked... unwell. Her hands were blistered and blackened from magic overflow, she trembled where she stood, and her eyes glowed the same sickly yellow as the feathers she was summoning.

Gerson and Scylla were readying themselves for a fight. Alphys cowered behind them. Nikita had, thankfully, gone home before the child had burst into the house.

Toriel... Did not wish to fight the child.

She knew Frisk wasn't in her right mind. According to Alphys, something had happened to Sans. And Frisk wouldn't be reasoned with at the moment. The child was overflowing with determination, and the look on her face was oh-so reminiscent of her dear son Chara whenever he got an idea into his head that he would not be talked out of.

With a soft sigh, Toriel stepped aside, pulling Gerson along with her.

"Your high-" Scylla began incredulously, but Toriel cut the deputy head of the Royal Guard off before she could object.

"Stand down, both of you. That's an order."

Both of her fellow soldiers stared at her in shock, but Frisk was already running through the break in their line at top speed, her wings pushing her faster then the former queen was expecting.

Letting her clearly ill child run off, letting a definite killer escape into the rest of the underground...

It was weak. It was cowardly.

It was what Toriel had chosen to do.

She couldn't bare to lose another child, she couldn't bear to be the one to stop her.

So, despite knowing it was the wrong choice, Toriel let Frisk run.

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The pair of children passed through the rest of the Underground, through Home, into the basement, and to the final turn-

" **What the fuck are you doing** _ **?**_ " Frisk stopped in her tracks, snarling at yet _another_ roadblock to finding Sans, situated right in front of the Door to the Rest of The Underground. Papyrus gave a small growl from her arms, but it was more cute than anything.

The yellow flower, who had vanished shortly after they left the bar the night before, was staring at her, vines already shifting to seal the door.

"Get out of the way." Frisk snapped, no longer in the mood to humor all of these _interruptions_.

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" **Frisk, think about this!** " Flowey yelled, face contorting. " **Think about what you're doing! You have to snap out of it, kid. You need to reload!** "

With a _ting_ , his sharded soul appeared. Flowey didn't move. He sucked in a breath, more out of habit than any real need, and braced himself.

This wasn't a smart idea. This was downright imbecilic. It was nearly impossible to talk down somebody who's Level of Violence was in the driver's seat. But that wouldn't stop him from trying. Because while it wasn't the _easy_ thing to do, it was the right thing to do.

Asriel Dreamurr owed Francine Seraphee a debt he could never repay.

" **Please, Frisk. Francine. Please, you have to** _ **think**_ **! Remember that hurting others is wrong; You gave me alf of yourself to prove that to me, please, please... Don't let yourself forget.** "

Frisk stared at him, head tilted, confusion warring with anger. "But the Doctor-"

" **Did Undyne have anything to do with the Doctor?** "

"Sh-she was trying to-"

" _ **No.**_ " Flowey said firmly. " **Undyne is your friend. She would have helped you if you weren't hurting people, Frisk. But she couldn't let you hurt people. Please, calm down and think about this rationally...** "

After a moment, the yellow light finally faded, and the girl sank to her knees, clutching at Papyrus. Tears pooled in her eyes.

"I-I'm... I just... S-sans..."

A single vine reached out, and brushed some of the child's hair from in front of her red eyes. The tears fell.

" **I know, kid. I know**." Flowey said gently, wrapping several more vines around her in a facsimile of a hug.


	31. Dare To Risk It All

I wanted to take a minute to thank all of my readers, everyone who commented and kudoed and reviewed this fic. It's been a wild ride, it really has. At over fifty-six thousand words, this fic is the longest single story I've ever written, though Stand By You will most likely eclipse it by a lot.

Sorry this chapter is so short _blep_

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Frisk sobbed for a good twenty minutes, Flowey rubbing between her wings and making soothing noises, and Papyrus nuzzling her while his tail lashed in agitation. Eventually she wiped her eyes and straightened, determination crossing her face. "Okay. I have to fix this, I have to go back..."

But how exactly did she do that?

'Chara?'

There was no response. Frisk frowned. Since his appearance in her mind, he'd always answered her right away. With the exception of when he was mad at she and Sans that very first night, Chara had always been at the ready with a quip or comment.

'Chara?!'

There was still no response.

'CARE?' Papyrus asked over the bond, head tilting in confusion.

Frisk took a shaky breath as the deafening mental silence continued. No Sans. No Chara. It was just her and Paps. And she only knew one way to induce a reset.

"O-okay, Paps. Here's what we're gonna do. I'm gonna go backwards again, okay? I want you to come to me as quickly as you can. Don't let anyone stop you, but don't hurt anyone, either, okay?"

The dog-like head of her baby brother bobbed in understanding.

" **What are you going to do**?" Flowey asked suspiciously. It seemed he'd figured out that Frisk couldn't exactly control the resetting.

"Something I probably should've done a while ago." Frisk muttered, nudging the toddler off of her lap and standing.

" **Frisk?** "

"Hey, don't worry. I know what I'm doing." The hybrid said. _Or at least, I_ hope _I do._ She shut her eyes, a soft cyan glow beginning to leak from behind her lids. Slowly, each of the feathers in her hair began to take on the same light blue sheen, combining with the glowing pink stones in the ceiling to bather the end of the hall in a light purple hue. She'd never actually _tried_ this before, so she had no idea if it would work. If she couldn't hurt herself with her own attacks, however, there were always other things she could do- the Ruins were full of dangerous tricks and traps and pitfalls.

Dozens of sharp cyan feathers formed in the magically-charged air and shot straight through her as she stepped towards them.

There was a pain like acid eating away the the tips of her wings. She fell to her knees, scrabbling helplessly at the ground, convulsing and coughing up blood and dust. The pain grew and grew and grew as more of herself fell away, and she could feel and hear Papyrus's distress- And then there was nothing, nothing at all.


	32. You're Ripped at Every Edge

On Archive of our own, this was the prologue chapter of the sequel to Counting Stars, Reach for the stars. I decided to keep it all as one book on FFN, so this and the next chapter may be a little jarring and expositiony.

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Toriel saw Nikita out of the Ruins, apologizing for her visit being unpleasant and dredging up bad memories.

"It's fine, Your Highness." The bird woman said softly, staring unseeing at the door. Her green eyes were unfocused, her feathers drooping. "I mean, it hurts to know what Roslyn did, what she was capable of... But I think it's better that I do, in the end." She shook her head. "I really just need some time to think."

"Of course. Have... Have a good day."

"Thank you." She muttered, exiting the ruins.

Toriel shut the door with a sigh. Not for the first time did she wish that she could just offer hugs and pie and jokes and make everything better for all of the Underground.

But it was not to be. Puns and cuddles were nice, but they were hardly cure-alls.

"Papyrus, please!" Scylla's panicked voice came from upstairs, and Toriel felt her soul go cold in fear.

She belted down the hall and up the stairs, her robes fluttering behind her.

The tiny blaster form of Papyrus was standing in the hall, facing the door. He was tense, coiled up and ready to pounce, claws digging into the carpet. He was growling at the tall blue fish woman blocking his exit.

Deputy Scylla, second in command of the Royal Guard, looked worriedly at the goat monster. "Queen Toriel, he was just sitting on the floor playing with blocks one second, then BAM! He was shifted and running for the door at top speed. I barely managed to beat him!"

Toriel frowned. She knew one thing that could have the toddler so distressed, and it was nothing good. After all, Papyrus and his two elder siblings -his brother, Sans, and his sister, Frisk- were connected via a soul bond that had been forced on them by Papyrus's creator, Dr. Wingdings Gaster. While Toriel, Nikita, Scylla, and the Captain of the Guard, Gerson, had been going through Dr. Gaster's assistant's journals, Frisk had gone hunting for Sans with the children's friends, Alphys and Undyne. Sans had fled at the first sight of Nikita, the lab assistant's younger sister, due to her strong resemblance to the other.

If, stars forbid, something had happened to one of her other darling adopted children, Papyrus would almost certainly know.

"Papyrus?" She asked gently, kneeling beside the tiny, kitten-sized monster. "My child? What is wrong?"

The skeletal dog-creature simply growled at her, tail lashing.

"Is it Sans? Frisk? Is one of them hurt?"

A frantic nod was her response, and Toriel felt as though she'd had a bucket of ice water dumped over her head.

"Will you lead me to them, my child?"

Papyrus gave a nod, and let out a strange combination of a bark and a chirp.

"Deputy, please stand aside. You may also wish to get Gerson..."

The blue-skinned fish lady saluted and bolted down the hall. Once she was out of the way, Papyrus wasted no time in legging it out the door and down the halls of the Ruins.

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"Stay away from me!" Frisk shouted at Undyne, backing against the wall of the room they were in. She knew it wasn't safe for her friends to be anywhere near her at the moment- She had _killed_ one of them, after all.

Francine Thana Seraphee was a very unique little girl. After being held captive by Dr. Gaster and having her damaged soul replced with half of a soul belonging to a monster, she had gained some very special abilities, including the power to turn back time if and when she died. She'd udes this power only twice, once after a botched battle with the King of the monsters, and once just a few minutes beforehand. Her elder brother in all but genetics had been recaptured by the Doctor, and Frisk had lost control of her emotions, raging and murdering everything that so much as crossed her path. She'd been out of control and desperate to hunt down her brother, her high Level of Violence driving her to the brink of actual genocide. Thankfully, she'd been snapped out of it by a friend, and had promptly killed herself so as to bring everything back to the way it had been at her last save point (unfortunately after Sans had been kidnapped).

But she still remembered doing it, and that was what had led to her current predicament, cowering against the wall, hands shaking, and trying to convince Undyne to _stay away from her_.

It wasn't going too well, honestly.

"Please, Frisk-"

" _No!_ It's not safe- Without Sans, _I'm not safe to be around_!"

She could practically see the gears turning in Undyne's head. "You... You have a high LV, don't you? And you use Sans to keep it stable." Frisk didn't have time to confirm or deny the completely true statement before she felt the fish girl check her stats.

"Francine 'Frisk' Seraphee," She read aloud. "LOVE 7, HP 32/36. *Feels Guilty. Wants her brothers."

Frisk flinched. That... Her LV had been _four_ , not seven! Had.. Had the LOVE she'd gained before the reset carried over? Chara hadn't mentioned that. And it wasn't like she could just ask him. She had yet to hear from the other person living inside of her mind despite reloading, so she could only assume he was MIA for the moment.

"Oh, F-Frisk..." Alphys said softly. To the girl's surprise, the yellow dinosaur monster walked right up to her and wrapped her into a hug. "D-don't worry... W-we'll tell Queen Toriel and C-Captain G-Gerson and they'll find h-him. You w-won't even have time to m-miss him."

This was too much for the traumatized little human-monster hybrid, and a pair of large wings unfolded from her back, sliding through slits in her tee-shirt. She squirmed away from Alphys and sank to the floor, curling into herself and wrapping her red and gold feathered appendages around her, allowing them to muffle her soft sobs. She just wanted to hold Papyrus and Sans and not have to worry anymore.

The other two children sat on either side of her, leaning into her sides.

They stayed like that until Papyrus and Toriel found them an hour later.


End file.
